Kit cath f 8f w/glv + wipe ster 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

$1.31

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.

$2.02

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.

$0.27 with HEALTH CHOICES vs $1.33 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
HEALTH CHOICES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $0.27 ↓ -79%
MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $0.27 ↓ -79%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
AETNA AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
COVENTRY AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
MERITAIN AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
WEBTPA AETNA $0.46 ↓ -65%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE OPTIONS $0.74 ↓ -44%
GEHA UNITED HEALTHCARE $0.80 ↓ -39%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE $0.80 ↓ -39%
CIGNA EAP CIGNA $0.80 ↓ -39%
CIGNA CIGNA $0.80 ↓ -39%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $0.84 ↓ -36%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $0.86 ↓ -34%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $0.86 ↓ -34%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $0.86 ↓ -34%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $0.86 ↓ -34%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE DEERE PREMIER $1.10 ↓ -16%
USA MANAGED CARE USA MANAGED CARE $1.13 ↓ -14%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $1.33 ↑ +2%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UHC OPTUM BEHAVIORAL HEALTH $1.33 ↑ +2%
CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE CRIME VICTIMS $1.33 ↑ +2%

Visitor-reported prices

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Kit cath f 8f w/glv + wipe ster at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $20.00 $4.88 – $12.43
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $6.00 not published
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $1.31 $0.47 – $1.33
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $5.25 $2.11 – $5.32
MercyOne Dyersville Medical Center Dyersville $1.31 $0.50 – $1.50
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $1.31 $0.38 – $1.33
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $1.31 $0.51 – $1.33
MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center Cedar Falls $1.31 $0.31 – $1.33

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →