Ghs central line insert < age 5, failed 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

$3,591.25

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.

$5,525.00

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.

$1,110.53 with HEALTH CHOICES vs $5,525.00 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 $1,110.53 ↓ -69%
MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $1,110.53 ↓ -69%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
AETNA AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
COVENTRY AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
MERITAIN AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
WEBTPA AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $1,917.18 ↓ -47%
CIGNA CIGNA $3,315.00 ↓ -8%
CIGNA EAP CIGNA $3,315.00 ↓ -8%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $3,508.38 ↓ -2%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $3,591.25 ↑ +0%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $3,591.25 ↑ +0%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $3,591.25 ↑ +0%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $3,591.25 ↑ +0%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE DEERE PREMIER $4,585.75 ↑ +28%
USA MANAGED CARE USA MANAGED CARE $4,696.25 ↑ +31%
CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE CRIME VICTIMS $5,525.00 ↑ +54%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UHC OPTUM BEHAVIORAL HEALTH $5,525.00 ↑ +54%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $5,525.00 ↑ +54%

Visitor-reported prices

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Ghs central line insert < age 5, failed at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $2,499.90 $76.61 – $3,032.46
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $504.00 $508.95 – $3,012.85
MercyOne West Des Moines Medical Center West Des Moines $5,746.00 $1,154.95 – $5,746.00
MercyOne Genesis Davenport Medical Center Davenport $567.00 $614.25 – $3,012.85
MercyOne Genesis DeWitt Medical Center DeWitt $567.00 $321.30 – $643.86
MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center Waterloo $417.00 $38.93 – $180.00
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo $1,068.08 $76.61 – $2,608.88
UnityPoint Health - Finley Hospital Dubuque $3,251.76 $76.61 – $3,251.75

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →