Balloon dilate urtrl strix at MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center

1111 6th Ave, Des Moines, IA · MercyOne · Nonprofit · NPI 1234567893

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Mar 31, 2026 · Ingested Aug 3, 2026

$250.90

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.

$386.00

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.

$51.66 with HEALTH CHOICES vs $257.00 with IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH — 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
HEALTH CHOICES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $51.66 ↓ -79%
MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $51.66 ↓ -79%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
AETNA AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
COVENTRY AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
MERITAIN AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
WEBTPA AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $89.18 ↓ -64%
CIGNA CIGNA $154.20 ↓ -39%
CIGNA EAP CIGNA $154.20 ↓ -39%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $163.20 ↓ -35%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $167.05 ↓ -33%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $167.05 ↓ -33%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $167.05 ↓ -33%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $167.05 ↓ -33%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE DEERE PREMIER $213.31 ↓ -15%
USA MANAGED CARE USA MANAGED CARE $218.45 ↓ -13%
CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE CRIME VICTIMS $257.00 ↑ +2%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UHC OPTUM BEHAVIORAL HEALTH $257.00 ↑ +2%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $257.00 ↑ +2%

Visitor-reported prices

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Balloon dilate urtrl strix at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $4,870.94 $161.17 – $1,790.07
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $1,304.40 not published
MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center Mason City $1,534.65 $402.94 – $1,574.00
MercyOne Genesis Davenport Medical Center Davenport $1,506.60 not published
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo $4,632.00 $161.17 – $2,192.52
UnityPoint Health - Finley Hospital Dubuque $4,632.00 $161.17 – $2,663.40
UnityPoint Health - Grinnell Regional Medical Center Grinnell $4,632.00 $161.17 – $428.77
UnityPoint Health - Jones Regional Medical Center Anamosa $4,632.00 $161.17 – $4,719.01

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →