Abdominal MRI (with and without contrast) at French Hospital

1911 Johnson Ave, San Luis Obispo, CA · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1881760452

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

$3,045.84

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.

$7,770.00

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.

$333.52 with BCBS - Anthem vs $2,474.00 with BCBS - Anthem — 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
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|All Plans $333.52 ↓ -89%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|< 21 $333.52 ↓ -89%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|> 21 $333.52 ↓ -89%
Molina Medicaid|< 21 $333.52 ↓ -89%
Molina Medicaid|> 21 $333.52 ↓ -89%
CenCal Medicaid|> 21 $351.25 ↓ -88%
CenCal Medicaid|< 21 $351.25 ↓ -88%
Health Net Medicaid|> 21 $410.23 ↓ -87%
Health Net Medicaid|< 21 $410.23 ↓ -87%
MHS Hospice Commercial|All Plans $446.12 ↓ -85%
Humana Commercial|All Plans $453.77 ↓ -85%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $453.77 ↓ -85%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $453.77 ↓ -85%
United Medicare|All Plans $453.77 ↓ -85%
Health Net Medicare|All Plans $453.77 ↓ -85%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $453.77 ↓ -85%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|All Plans $453.77 ↓ -85%
Alignment Medicare|All Plans $453.77 ↓ -85%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|All Plans $453.77 ↓ -85%
MHS HSPCC Commercial|All Plans $528.66 ↓ -83%
United Commercial|HMO $828.27 ↓ -73%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $828.27 ↓ -73%
United Commercial|Non-Options PPO $828.27 ↓ -73%
Western Growers Commercial|All Plans $979.00 ↓ -68%
Health Net Commercial|FFS $1,096.48 ↓ -64%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $1,213.96 ↓ -60%
Healthsmart Commercial|All Plans $1,664.30 ↓ -45%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $1,664.30 ↓ -45%
Aetna Commercial|Gatekeeper $1,713.53 ↓ -44%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $1,918.84 ↓ -37%
Aetna Commercial|Non-Gatekeeper $1,958.00 ↓ -36%
Cigna Commercial|All Other Plans $2,111.00 ↓ -31%
Cigna Commercial|PPO $2,111.00 ↓ -31%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $2,422.00 ↓ -20%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|Non-MCS $2,474.00 ↓ -19%

Visitor-reported prices

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Abdominal MRI (with and without contrast) at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
St. John's Camarillo Hospital Camarillo $2,916.21 $453.77 – $5,193.24
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $3,402.72 $71.43 – $4,749.12
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma $5,118.87 $470.15 – $5,844.35
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $3,828.46 $333.52 – $6,654.20
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $9,470.52 $333.52 – $3,786.72
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $2,431.17 $333.52 – $5,242.40
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield $2,404.96 $333.52 – $5,176.87
Queen of The Valley Medical Center Napa $11,141.46 $495.35 – $7,385.80

All California hospitals for this procedure →