Esoph balloon distension tst at CHI Health Mercy Council Bluffs

800 Mercy Drive, Council Bluffs, IA · Chihealth · · NPI 1265517759

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Feb 28, 2026 · Ingested Sep 16, 2026

$508.62

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.

$1,211.00

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.

$181.65 with Centene vs $12,765.09 with Timpte — 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
Centene Medicaid|NE Total Care $181.65 ↓ -64%
ELAP Commercial|All Plans $339.08 ↓ -33%
Creighton University Employees Commercial|All Plans $496.51 ↓ -2%
Centene Medicaid|IA Total Care $503.77 ↓ -1%
Amerigroup Medicaid|All Plans $503.77 ↓ -1%
IAMolina Medicaid|All Plans $513.65 ↑ +1%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $517.10 ↑ +2%
Medica Medicare|All Plans $517.10 ↑ +2%
United Medicare|All Plans $517.10 ↑ +2%
PACE Medicare|All Plans $517.10 ↑ +2%
BCBS - NE Medicare|All Plans $517.10 ↑ +2%
Todays Options Medicare|All Plans $527.44 ↑ +4%
Centene Medicare|All Plans $532.61 ↑ +5%
Amerigroup Medicare|All Plans $542.96 ↑ +7%
Great Plains Medicare|All Plans $542.96 ↑ +7%
United Medicaid|Community Plan $557.06 ↑ +10%
United Commercial|All Plans $569.17 ↑ +12%
Medica Commercial|Open Access $629.72 ↑ +24%
Midlands Choice Commercial|Premier $629.72 ↑ +24%
QuikTrip Commercial|All Plans $726.60 ↑ +43%
PHCS Commercial|All Plans $859.81 ↑ +69%
Medica Commercial|ACO $884.88 ↑ +74%
Midlands Choice Commercial|Standard $908.25 ↑ +79%
Medica Commercial|CHI Health $953.00 ↑ +87%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $1,029.35 ↑ +102%
AMPS Commercial|All Plans $1,147.96 ↑ +126%
Medica Commercial|All Other Plans $1,302.00 ↑ +156%
One World Commercial|Narrow Network $11,100.08 ↑ +2082%
Greater Omaha Packing Commercial|Narrow Network $11,100.08 ↑ +2082%
Millard Public Schools Commercial|Narrow Network $11,100.08 ↑ +2082%
One World Commercial|Broad Network $12,765.09 ↑ +2410%
Millard Public Schools Commercial|Broad Network $12,765.09 ↑ +2410%
Greater Omaha Packing Commercial|Broad Network $12,765.09 ↑ +2410%
Timpte Commercial|Broad Network $12,765.09 ↑ +2410%

Visitor-reported prices

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Esoph balloon distension tst at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo $1,164.80 $44.37 – $439.80
UnityPoint Health - Finley Hospital Dubuque $1,164.80 $44.37 – $466.52
UnityPoint Health - Grinnell Regional Medical Center Grinnell $1,541.96 $44.37 – $776.76
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $1,164.80 $44.37 – $511.21
UnityPoint Health - Jones Regional Medical Center Anamosa $1,164.80 $44.37 – $117.18
UnityPoint Health - Marshalltown Marshalltown $1,164.80 $44.37 – $516.32
UnityPoint Health - St. Lukes Downtown Sioux City $1,164.80 $44.37 – $469.91
UnityPoint Health - Trinity Bettendorf Bettendorf $1,164.80 $44.37 – $456.58

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →