F-18 sodium fluoride 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

$1,391.25

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.

$1,391.25

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.

$279.64 with MEDICAL ASSOCIATES vs $1,391.25 with CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE — 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
MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $279.64 ↓ -80%
HEALTH CHOICES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $279.64 ↓ -80%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE OPTIONS $379.91 ↓ -73%
GEHA UNITED HEALTHCARE $379.91 ↓ -73%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE $379.91 ↓ -73%
COVENTRY AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
MERITAIN AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
WEBTPA AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
AETNA AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $482.76 ↓ -65%
CIGNA CIGNA $834.75 ↓ -40%
CIGNA EAP CIGNA $834.75 ↓ -40%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $883.44 ↓ -37%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $904.31 ↓ -35%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $904.31 ↓ -35%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $904.31 ↓ -35%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $904.31 ↓ -35%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE DEERE PREMIER $1,154.74 ↓ -17%
USA MANAGED CARE USA MANAGED CARE $1,182.56 ↓ -15%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $1,391.25 ↑ +0%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UHC OPTUM BEHAVIORAL HEALTH $1,391.25 ↑ +0%
CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE CRIME VICTIMS $1,391.25 ↑ +0%

Visitor-reported prices

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F-18 sodium fluoride at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines not published $269.63 – $629.59
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $191.40 not published
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $1,391.25 $496.68 – $1,391.25
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $1,391.25 $550.80 – $1,391.25
MercyOne Dyersville Medical Center Dyersville $1,391.25 $525.89 – $1,565.99
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $1,391.25 $393.72 – $1,391.25
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $1,391.25 $531.74 – $1,391.25
MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center Cedar Falls $1,391.25 $326.94 – $1,391.25

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →