ER Visit (level 1, minor) 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

$335.56

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.

$856.00

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.

$21.77 with BCBS - Anthem vs $2,708.00 with United — 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 $21.77 ↓ -94%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|> 21 $21.77 ↓ -94%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|< 21 $21.77 ↓ -94%
CenCal Medicaid|> 21 $21.77 ↓ -94%
Molina Medicaid|< 21 $21.77 ↓ -94%
Molina Medicaid|> 21 $21.77 ↓ -94%
CenCal Medicaid|< 21 $21.77 ↓ -94%
Health Net Medicaid|< 21 $26.78 ↓ -92%
Health Net Medicaid|> 21 $26.78 ↓ -92%
MHS Hospice Commercial|All Plans $81.34 ↓ -76%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|All Plans $111.88 ↓ -67%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|All Plans $111.88 ↓ -67%
Humana Commercial|All Plans $111.88 ↓ -67%
Alignment Medicare|All Plans $111.88 ↓ -67%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $111.88 ↓ -67%
Health Net Medicare|All Plans $111.88 ↓ -67%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $111.88 ↓ -67%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $111.88 ↓ -67%
United Medicare|All Plans $111.88 ↓ -67%
MHS HSPCC Commercial|All Plans $231.12 ↓ -31%
Western Growers Commercial|All Plans $470.80 ↑ +40%
Health Net Commercial|FFS $479.36 ↑ +43%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $487.92 ↑ +45%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|Exchange $522.16 ↑ +56%
Aetna Commercial|Gatekeeper $573.52 ↑ +71%
Cigna Commercial|All Other Plans $599.20 ↑ +79%
Cigna Commercial|PPO $599.20 ↑ +79%
Aetna Commercial|Non-Gatekeeper $633.44 ↑ +89%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|FFS $676.24 ↑ +102%
Healthsmart Commercial|All Plans $727.60 ↑ +117%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $727.60 ↑ +117%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $838.88 ↑ +150%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $1,332.00 ↑ +297%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|Non-MCS $1,415.00 ↑ +322%
United Commercial|Non-Options PPO $2,189.00 ↑ +552%
United Commercial|HMO $2,264.00 ↑ +575%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $2,708.00 ↑ +707%

Visitor-reported prices

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ER Visit (level 1, minor) at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
St. John's Camarillo Hospital Camarillo $370.99 $27.95 – $694.54
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $311.68 $17.06 – $331.74
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma $587.01 $113.64 – $115.95
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $350.54 $21.77 – $743.82
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $262.41 $16.04 – $60.76
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $176.60 $21.77 – $334.56
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield $174.70 $21.77 – $390.32
Queen of The Valley Medical Center Napa $631.89 $119.73 – $119.73

All California hospitals for this procedure →