healthcosts.net

Abdominal MRI (without contrast) at UnityPoint Health - St. Luke's Hospital

1026 A Avenue N.E, Cedar Rapids, IA · UnityPoint Health · · NPI 1083708226

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Jan 28, 2026 · Ingested Aug 12, 2026

$3,254.05

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.

$4,067.56

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.

$63.62 with Aetna vs $1,525.34 with Medica Exchange Insure — 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 Medicare Advantage $63.62 ↓ -98%
Molina Medicare Advantage $64.89 ↓ -98%
Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield Medicare Advantage $64.89 ↓ -98%
Amerivantage Medicare Advantage $66.80 ↓ -98%
Humana Medicare Advantage $66.80 ↓ -98%
United Healthcare Medicare Advantage $66.80 ↓ -98%
United Healthcare HMO $93.22 ↓ -97%
United Healthcare PPO $93.22 ↓ -97%
Cigna/Midlands Commercial $134.93 ↓ -96%
Health Partners Open Network Commercial $140.60 ↓ -96%
Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield HMO $152.60 ↓ -95%
Wellmark UHP Self-Funded Commercial $152.60 ↓ -95%
Aetna HMO $163.51 ↓ -95%
Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield PPO $179.50 ↓ -94%
Aetna PPO $188.96 ↓ -94%
Amerigroup Managed Medicaid $212.61 ↓ -93%
Iowa Total Care Managed Medicaid $212.61 ↓ -93%
Medica Exchange Inspire Commercial $1,358.57 ↓ -58%
Medica Exchange Insure Commercial $1,525.34 ↓ -53%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Abdominal MRI (without contrast) at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $3,553.49 $63.62 – $1,175.32
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo $1,310.02 $63.62 – $862.97
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $1,414.20 $231.38 – $323.93
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $2,458.95 $214.06 – $3,783.00
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $1,286.35 $219.72 – $1,979.00
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $2,859.35 $1,681.30 – $4,399.00
MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center Cedar Falls $1,602.90 $224.79 – $2,466.00
MercyOne West Des Moines Medical Center West Des Moines $5,382.00 $225.21 – $5,382.00

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →