Establish brain cavity shunt at Northwestern Memorial Hospital

251 E. Huron, Chicago, IL · Nm · · NPI 1497859649

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Apr 1, 2026 · Ingested Sep 17, 2026

$78,388.19

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.

$111,983.13

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.

$425.00 with OPTUM/UNITED BEHAVIORAL HEALTH [157] vs $6,161.00 with AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] — 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
OPTUM/UNITED BEHAVIORAL HEALTH [157] NMH Optum UBH $425.00 ↓ -99%
CIGNA HEALTH PLAN [178] NMH CIGNA ALTERNATIVE $1,152.11 ↓ -99%
AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] NMH AETNA NM EMPLOYEES $1,195.23 ↓ -98%
CURAECHOICE [6100] NMHC CURAECHOICE $1,441.67 ↓ -98%
AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] NMHC IMAGINE HEALTH $1,663.47 ↓ -98%
IMAGINE HEALTH [6032] NMHC IMAGINE HEALTH $1,663.47 ↓ -98%
AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] NMH AETNA BP $1,848.30 ↓ -98%
AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] NMH AETNA $1,971.52 ↓ -97%
AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] NMH AETNA ASA $2,174.83 ↓ -97%
HUMANA HEALTH PLAN [130] NMH ADVOCATE IPA $2,464.40 ↓ -97%
HUMANA HEALTH PLAN [130] NMH CHS IPA $2,464.40 ↓ -97%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NMHC CHWN IPA $2,772.45 ↓ -96%
HUMANA HEALTH PLAN [130] NMHC SCPP IPA $2,772.45 ↓ -96%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NMHC SCPP IPA $2,772.45 ↓ -96%
CIGNA HEALTH PLAN [178] NMH CIGNA BROAD $2,858.70 ↓ -96%
HEALTHLINK [125] NMH SEIU HEALTHLINK $3,080.50 ↓ -96%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NMHC UIC IPA $3,080.50 ↓ -96%
HUMANA HEALTH PLAN [130] NMHC UIC IPA $3,080.50 ↓ -96%
UNITED HEALTHCARE [158] NMH UHC CORE $3,132.00 ↓ -96%
UNITED HEALTHCARE [158] NMH UHC $3,480.00 ↓ -96%
GLOBAL MEDICAL MANAGEMENT INC [6090] NMHC GMMI $3,573.38 ↓ -95%
HEALTH'S FINEST NETWORK [126] NMH HFN PLATINUM/CHC ELITE $4,004.65 ↓ -95%
MEDPARTNERS [6038] NMHC MEDPARTNERS $4,312.70 ↓ -94%
MULTIPLAN/PHCS [142] NMH PHCS PPO $4,928.80 ↓ -94%
CIGNA HEALTH PLAN [178] NMH CIGNA BEHAVIORAL HEALTH (EVERNORTH) $4,928.80 ↓ -94%
HEALTH'S FINEST NETWORK [126] NMH HFN/20 EPO $5,052.02 ↓ -94%
HEALTH'S FINEST NETWORK [126] NMH HFN/10 PPO $5,236.85 ↓ -93%
FIRST HEALTH PLAN [6034] NMHC NON-CONTRACTED PAYORS $6,161.00 ↓ -92%
GALAXY HEALTH NETWORK [220] NMHC NON-CONTRACTED PAYORS $6,161.00 ↓ -92%
HEALTHLINK [125] NMHC NON-CONTRACTED PAYORS $6,161.00 ↓ -92%
MULTIPLAN/PHCS [142] NMH NON-CONTRACTED PAYORS $6,161.00 ↓ -92%
MULTIPLAN/PHCS [142] NMHC NON-CONTRACTED PAYORS $6,161.00 ↓ -92%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NMHC NON-CONTRACTED PAYORS $6,161.00 ↓ -92%
CIGNA HEALTH PLAN [178] NMHC NON-CONTRACTED PAYORS $6,161.00 ↓ -92%
UNITED HEALTHCARE [158] NMH UHC NON-CONTRACTED OON - ED ONLY $6,161.00 ↓ -92%
UNITED HEALTHCARE [158] NMHC NON-CONTRACTED PAYORS $6,161.00 ↓ -92%
UNITED HEALTHCARE [158] NMHC UHC REF LAB JOHN DEERE $6,161.00 ↓ -92%
AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] NMHC NON-CONTRACTED PAYORS $6,161.00 ↓ -92%
HUMANA HEALTH PLAN [130] NMH IL HEALTH PARTNERS IPA not published by hospital
CIGNA HEALTH PLAN [178] NMH CIGNA LIFESOURCE TRANSPLANT not published by hospital
AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] NMH AETNA TRANSPLANT not published by hospital

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Establish brain cavity shunt at other Illinois hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center Chicago not published $3,181.00 – $6,291.00
Advocate Trinity Hospital Chicago not published $3,181.00 – $6,291.00
MercyOne Genesis Silvis Medical Center Silvis $2,232.60 $3,423.32 – $5,545.73
MercyOne Genesis Aledo Medical Center Aledo $2,232.60 $2,970.16 – $2,970.16
UnityPoint Health - Trinity Moline Rock Island $2,464.00 $897.09 – $2,399.79
OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center Rockford $2,397.00 $1,178.08 – $5,543.00
Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital Geneva $4,312.70 not published
Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital Palos Heights $4,312.70 not published

All Illinois hospitals for this procedure →