Arthrocentesis/aspiration/injection major joint/bursa w/ultrasound guidance (both sides) at Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital DBA Northwestern Medicine Catherine Gratz Griffin Lake Forest Hospital

1000 N. Westmoreland Rd., Lake Forest, IL · Nm · · NPI 1124025176

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

$1,043.00

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.

$1,490.00

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.

$247.34 with AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] vs $1,490.00 with MULTIPLAN/PHCS [142] — 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
AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] NLFH AETNA NM EMPLOYEES $247.34 ↓ -76%
ALTERNATE BLUE CROSS [1402] NLFH BCBS HMO $315.73 ↓ -70%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NLFH BCBS HMO $315.73 ↓ -70%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NLFH BCBS BLUECHOICE PREFERRED $348.66 ↓ -67%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NLFH BCBS BLUECHOICE SELECT $348.66 ↓ -67%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NLFH BCBS BLUECHOICE OPTIONS $348.66 ↓ -67%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NLFH BCBS PPO $406.77 ↓ -61%
ALTERNATE BLUE CROSS [1402] NLFH BCBS PPO $406.77 ↓ -61%
CIGNA HEALTH PLAN [178] NLFH CIGNA ALTERNATIVE $561.73 ↓ -46%
AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] NLFH AETNA $640.70 ↓ -39%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NLFH BC LAKE COUNTY PHYS ASSOC IPA $670.50 ↓ -36%
AETNA HEALTH PLAN [171] NLFH AETNA ASA $677.95 ↓ -35%
HEALTHLINK [125] NLFH SEIU HEALTHLINK $745.00 ↓ -29%
HEALTH'S FINEST NETWORK [126] NLFH HFN PLATINUM/CHC ELITE $952.11 ↓ -9%
THE ALLIANCE [1703] NLFH THE ALLIANCE $957.03 ↓ -8%
CIGNA HEALTH PLAN [178] NLFH CIGNA BROAD $965.52 ↓ -7%
MULTIPLAN/PHCS [142] NLFH PHCS $1,192.00 ↑ +14%
BEECHSTREET [176] NLFH PHCS $1,192.00 ↑ +14%
FIRST HEALTH PLAN [6034] NLFH FIRST HEALTH $1,221.80 ↑ +17%
HEALTH'S FINEST NETWORK [126] NLFH HFN PPO $1,341.00 ↑ +29%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NLFH BCBS PAR/INDEMNITY ADP $1,490.00 ↑ +43%
UNITED HEALTHCARE [158] NLFH UHC NON-CONTRACTED OON - ED ONLY $1,490.00 ↑ +43%
MULTIPLAN/PHCS [142] NLFH NON-CONTRACTED PAYORS $1,490.00 ↑ +43%
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD [1401] NLFH ADVOCATE IPA not published by hospital
GLOBAL EXCEL [1712] NLFH MEDICARE not published by hospital
ALTERNATE HUMANA MEDICARE ADV [2409] NLFH HUMANA MEDICARE ADVT not published by hospital
ALTERNATE BLUE CROSS MEDICARE ADV [2304] NLFH BLUE CROSS MEDICARE ADVT not published by hospital
HUMANA HEALTH PLAN [130] NLFH ADVOCATE IPA not published by hospital

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Arthrocentesis/aspiration/injection major joint/bursa w/ultrasound guidance (both sides) at other Illinois hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
MercyOne Genesis Silvis Medical Center Silvis $131.40 $201.48 – $438.97
MercyOne Genesis Aledo Medical Center Aledo $131.40 $1,188.84 – $2,970.16
Uchicago Medicine Adventhealth Hinsdale Hinsdale $400.00 $322.03 – $532.87
Advocate Christ Medical Center Oak Lawn $810.00 $425.52 – $6,291.00
Northwestern Memorial Hospital Chicago $1,836.80 not published
Advocate Condell Medical Center Libertyville $545.00 $429.46 – $4,528.00
Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital Downers Grove $930.00 $446.18 – $6,291.00
UnityPoint Health - Trinity Moline Rock Island $1,096.58 $53.01 – $302.24

All Illinois hospitals for this procedure →