Kit cast tcc 3in w/2reg boots total contact cast 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

$257.21

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.

$395.71

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.

$68.48 with MEDICAL ASSOCIATES vs $340.71 with UNITED HEALTHCARE — 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 $68.48 ↓ -73%
HEALTH CHOICES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $68.48 ↓ -73%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
AETNA AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
COVENTRY AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
MERITAIN AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
WEBTPA AETNA $118.23 ↓ -54%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE OPTIONS $189.09 ↓ -26%
CIGNA CIGNA $204.43 ↓ -21%
CIGNA EAP CIGNA $204.43 ↓ -21%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE $204.43 ↓ -21%
GEHA UNITED HEALTHCARE $204.43 ↓ -21%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $216.35 ↓ -16%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $221.46 ↓ -14%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $221.46 ↓ -14%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $221.46 ↓ -14%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $221.46 ↓ -14%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE DEERE PREMIER $282.79 ↑ +10%
USA MANAGED CARE USA MANAGED CARE $289.60 ↑ +13%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $340.71 ↑ +32%
CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE CRIME VICTIMS $340.71 ↑ +32%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UHC OPTUM BEHAVIORAL HEALTH $340.71 ↑ +32%

Visitor-reported prices

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Kit cast tcc 3in w/2reg boots total contact cast at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $103.20 $25.66 – $65.31
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $82.20 not published
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $257.21 $121.63 – $340.71
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $267.13 $140.09 – $353.85
MercyOne Dyersville Medical Center Dyersville $257.21 $128.79 – $383.50
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $257.21 $96.42 – $340.71
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $257.21 $130.22 – $340.71
MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center Cedar Falls $257.21 $80.07 – $340.71

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →