Pelvic CT scan (with 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

$2,126.21

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.

$5,424.00

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.

$212.89 with MHS Hospice vs $1,793.00 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
MHS Hospice Commercial|All Plans $212.89 ↓ -90%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -89%
Humana Commercial|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -89%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -89%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -89%
Alignment Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -89%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -89%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -89%
United Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -89%
Health Net Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -89%
MHS HSPCC Commercial|All Plans $291.87 ↓ -86%
CenCal Medicaid|> 21 $293.26 ↓ -86%
CenCal Medicaid|< 21 $293.26 ↓ -86%
Molina Medicaid|> 21 $293.26 ↓ -86%
Molina Medicaid|< 21 $293.26 ↓ -86%
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|All Plans $293.26 ↓ -86%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|> 21 $293.26 ↓ -86%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|< 21 $293.26 ↓ -86%
Health Net Medicaid|> 21 $360.71 ↓ -83%
Health Net Medicaid|< 21 $360.71 ↓ -83%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $401.74 ↓ -81%
United Commercial|HMO $401.74 ↓ -81%
United Commercial|Non-Options PPO $401.74 ↓ -81%
Western Growers Commercial|All Plans $540.50 ↓ -75%
Health Net Commercial|FFS $605.36 ↓ -72%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $670.22 ↓ -68%
Healthsmart Commercial|All Plans $918.85 ↓ -57%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $918.85 ↓ -57%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $1,059.38 ↓ -50%
Aetna Commercial|Non-Gatekeeper $1,081.00 ↓ -49%
Aetna Commercial|Gatekeeper $1,081.00 ↓ -49%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $1,756.00 ↓ -17%
Cigna Commercial|All Other Plans $1,768.00 ↓ -17%
Cigna Commercial|PPO $1,768.00 ↓ -17%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|Non-MCS $1,793.00 ↓ -16%

Visitor-reported prices

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Pelvic CT scan (with contrast) at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
St. John's Camarillo Hospital Camarillo $2,426.96 $226.19 – $4,321.98
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $1,928.91 $35.60 – $3,288.30
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma $4,982.70 $236.37 – $1,581.72
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $2,647.18 $226.19 – $4,238.50
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $5,302.70 $293.26 – $1,719.90
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $2,386.28 $226.19 – $5,145.60
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield $2,360.55 $226.19 – $5,081.28
Queen of The Valley Medical Center Napa $5,395.29 $249.04 – $1,998.90

All California hospitals for this procedure →