Artery x-rays lungs at Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago (Presence Chicago Hospital Network)

2900 N Lake Shore Dr, Chicago, IL · Ascension · · NPI 1679659585

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Jan 1, 2026 · Ingested Sep 7, 2026

$1,718.97

Cash price

?

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.

$5,209.00

Gross charge

?

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.

$80.15 with CIGNA IFP vs $6,438.74 with UHC CHOICE — same scan, same building. Share

Negotiated rates by payer
?

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
?

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
?

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
CIGNA IFP 3019_JCIL CIGNA IFP 20250101 $80.15 ↓ -95%
CIGNA ONE HEALTH 2826_CIGNA ONE HEALTH 20241001 $148.25 ↓ -91%
CIGNA 3006_JCIL CIGNA 20250101 $667.95 ↓ -61%
BCBS BCE 2879_JCIL BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD BCE 20241001 $707.85 ↓ -59%
BCBS BCS 2832_JCIL BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD BCS 20241001 $707.85 ↓ -59%
BCBS PPO 2834_JCIL BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD PPO 20241001 $1,046.76 ↓ -39%
UHC PPO 3096_PFIL, PRIL, PSIL UNITED HEALTHCARE OPTIONS PPO 20250701 $2,861.66 ↑ +66%
AETNA 2925_JCIL AETNA 20250201 $3,073.31 ↑ +79%
UHC CHOICE 3095_PFIL, PRIL, PSIL UNITED HEALTHCARE 20250701 $6,438.74 ↑ +275%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Artery x-rays lungs at other Illinois hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center Chicago $2,990.00 $220.00 – $6,299.55
Advocate Trinity Hospital Chicago $2,990.00 $220.00 – $6,299.55
MercyOne Genesis Silvis Medical Center Silvis $2,618.40 $1,396.48 – $4,921.53
Advocate Christ Medical Center Oak Lawn $2,990.00 $220.00 – $6,299.55
Advocate Condell Medical Center Libertyville $2,990.00 $195.00 – $6,299.55
Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital Downers Grove $2,990.00 $220.00 – $6,299.55
UnityPoint Health - Trinity Moline Rock Island $1,280.00 $62.90 – $2,448.63
SSM Health Good Samaritan Hospital - Mt. Vernon Mount Vernon $10,000.10 $3,383.62 – $3,552.80

All Illinois hospitals for this procedure →