Echo guide for transfusion 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

$367.31

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.

$937.00

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.

$162.03 with BCBS - Anthem vs $918.26 with MultiPlan — 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 $162.03 ↓ -56%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|> 21 $162.03 ↓ -56%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|< 21 $162.03 ↓ -56%
CenCal Medicaid|> 21 $162.03 ↓ -56%
CenCal Medicaid|< 21 $162.03 ↓ -56%
Molina Medicaid|< 21 $162.03 ↓ -56%
Molina Medicaid|> 21 $162.03 ↓ -56%
Health Net Medicaid|> 21 $199.30 ↓ -46%
Health Net Medicaid|< 21 $199.30 ↓ -46%
MHS HSPCC Commercial|All Plans $252.99 ↓ -31%
Aetna Commercial|Gatekeeper $304.80 ↓ -17%
Western Growers Commercial|All Plans $468.50 ↑ +28%
Health Net Commercial|FFS $524.72 ↑ +43%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $580.94 ↑ +58%
Aetna Commercial|Non-Gatekeeper $595.84 ↑ +62%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $630.08 ↑ +72%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|Non-MCS $643.67 ↑ +75%
Healthsmart Commercial|All Plans $796.45 ↑ +117%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $796.45 ↑ +117%
United Commercial|Non-Options PPO $862.04 ↑ +135%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $918.26 ↑ +150%

Visitor-reported prices

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Echo guide for transfusion at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $482.79 $162.03 – $1,105.44
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma not published $312.63 – $355.52
Queen of The Valley Medical Center Napa not published $449.28 – $460.38
Providence St Joseph Hospital Eureka Eureka not published $509.49 – $509.49
Healdsburg Hospital Healdsburg not published $180.01 – $203.24
Redwood Memorial Hospital Fortuna not published $510.68 – $510.68
Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital Santa Rosa not published $382.23 – $401.62
Providence Mission Hospital - Mission Viejo Mission Viejo not published $328.66 – $570.49

All California hospitals for this procedure →