Head CT scan (without contrast) at Methodist Hospital of Sacramento

7500 Hospital Dr., Sacramento, CA · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1467560599

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Feb 28, 2026 · Ingested Sep 10, 2026

$1,363.11

Cash price

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Discounted cash price

What a hospital charges a self-pay patient who pays directly, without going through insurance — usually well below the gross charge.

Example: A CT scan has a $3,200 gross charge but an $850 discounted cash price. Ask for it by name when scheduling — hospitals don't always advertise it up front.

Full explanation →

What you pay up front if you don't use insurance.

$4,733.00

Gross charge

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Gross charge (chargemaster price)

The hospital's full, undiscounted list price — pulled from its internal "chargemaster" price list. Almost no one actually pays this.

Example: A chest X-ray has a gross charge of $1,450. The same hospital's discounted cash price for the same X-ray is $180 — the gross charge mostly anchors negotiations, not what patients pay.

Full explanation →

The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.

$76.46 with Hill Physicians vs $5,233.00 with Cigna — same scan, same building. Share

Negotiated rates by payer
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Negotiated rate

The price a specific insurance plan agreed to pay the hospital for a service — it varies by insurer, and even by plan within the same insurer.

Example: The same knee MRI has a negotiated rate of $904 with one insurer's PPO plan and $1,509 with another's — identical hospital, identical scan.

Full explanation →

Payer
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Payer

The insurance company footing the bill — Aetna, UnitedHealthcare, Medicare, and so on.

Example: "Blue Cross Blue Shield" is the payer. Its negotiated rate for an MRI might be $904, while a different payer's negotiated rate for the same scan is $1,509.

Full explanation →
Plan
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Plan

The specific product an insurer sells — e.g. "Blue Cross PPO 500" — which sets your deductible, coinsurance and negotiated rates.

Example: Two people both insured by Aetna can owe very different amounts for the same MRI: $50 with an HMO plan's flat copay, or the full $1,200 toward a high-deductible PPO plan's unmet deductible.

Full explanation →
Negotiated rate vs. cash
Hill Physicians Commercial|All Plans $76.46 ↓ -94%
Hill Physicians Medicare|All Plans $123.26 ↓ -91%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|All Other Plans $131.77 ↓ -90%
Connected Care Commercial|Intel $139.74 ↓ -90%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $139.74 ↓ -90%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $139.74 ↓ -90%
Humana Commercial|All Plans $139.74 ↓ -90%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|All Plans $139.74 ↓ -90%
Health Net Medicare|All Plans $139.74 ↓ -90%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $139.74 ↓ -90%
United Medicare|All Plans $142.54 ↓ -90%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|Imperial $143.93 ↓ -89%
United Medicaid|> 21 $145.26 ↓ -89%
United Medicaid|< 21 $145.26 ↓ -89%
Hill Physicians Medicaid|All Plans $159.79 ↓ -88%
Molina Medicaid|All Plans $190.39 ↓ -86%
United Commercial|Options PPO $245.18 ↓ -82%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $245.18 ↓ -82%
United Commercial|HMO $245.18 ↓ -82%
United Commercial|Non-Options PPO $245.18 ↓ -82%
California Health & Wellness Medicaid|All Plans $334.10 ↓ -75%
Health Net Medicaid|All Plans $334.10 ↓ -75%
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|All Plans $536.47 ↓ -61%
Aetna Commercial|HMO $577.72 ↓ -58%
Aetna Commercial|PPO $577.72 ↓ -58%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $577.72 ↓ -58%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|All Plans $624.63 ↓ -54%
Western Health Advantage Commercial|All Plans $1,656.55 ↑ +22%
Kaiser Medicaid|All Plans $1,940.53 ↑ +42%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|Connection EPO $2,326.00 ↑ +71%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|All Other Plans $2,908.00 ↑ +113%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $3,549.75 ↑ +160%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|BRMS $3,549.75 ↑ +160%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $3,739.07 ↑ +174%
Sutter Health Commercial|All Plans $3,786.40 ↑ +178%
Healthsmart Commercial|All Plans $3,833.73 ↑ +181%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $3,868.00 ↑ +184%
Cigna Commercial|LocalPlus $3,925.00 ↑ +188%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $3,928.39 ↑ +188%
Cigna Commercial|All Other Plans $5,233.00 ↑ +284%

Visitor-reported prices

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Head CT scan (without contrast) at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Mercy General Hospital Sacramento $1,031.80 $76.46 – $3,925.00
St. John's Camarillo Hospital Camarillo $1,778.28 $135.12 – $3,166.80
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $712.05 $21.27 – $1,228.99
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma $3,571.02 $140.89 – $1,094.19
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $2,024.87 $135.12 – $2,299.08
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $3,435.90 $145.26 – $1,112.30
French Hospital San Luis Obispo $1,062.32 $114.21 – $1,768.00
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $1,593.82 $135.12 – $3,436.80

All California hospitals for this procedure →