Plastic mod low ext pad/line 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

$139.22

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.

$331.47

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.

$49.73 with Centene vs $368.10 with Medica — 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 $49.73 ↓ -64%
ELAP Commercial|All Plans $92.82 ↓ -33%
Amerigroup Medicaid|All Plans $125.84 ↓ -10%
Centene Medicaid|IA Total Care $125.84 ↓ -10%
IAMolina Medicaid|All Plans $128.30 ↓ -8%
United Medicaid|Community Plan $152.48 ↑ +10%
QuikTrip Commercial|All Plans $198.89 ↑ +43%
PHCS Commercial|All Plans $235.35 ↑ +69%
United Commercial|All Plans $245.29 ↑ +76%
Medica Commercial|Open Access $248.61 ↑ +79%
Midlands Choice Commercial|Standard $248.61 ↑ +79%
Midlands Choice Commercial|Premier $248.61 ↑ +79%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $281.75 ↑ +102%
Medica Commercial|ACO $331.47 ↑ +138%
Medica Commercial|CHI Health $351.51 ↑ +152%
Medica Commercial|All Other Plans $368.10 ↑ +164%

Visitor-reported prices

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Plastic mod low ext pad/line at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
CHI Health Mercy Corning Corning $159.11 $142.54 – $324.85
CHI Health Missouri Valley Missouri Valley $162.43 $116.02 – $324.85
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo not published $89.62 – $228.05
UnityPoint Health - Finley Hospital Dubuque not published $89.62 – $228.05
UnityPoint Health - Grinnell Regional Medical Center Grinnell not published $89.62 – $228.05
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines not published $89.62 – $228.05
UnityPoint Health - Jones Regional Medical Center Anamosa not published $89.62 – $228.05
UnityPoint Health - Marshalltown Marshalltown not published $89.62 – $228.05

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →