Milrinone 20 mg/100 ml(200 mcg/ml) in 5 % dextrose intravenous piggybk 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

$43.50

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.

$43.50

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.

$5.53 with HEALTH CHOICES vs $27.50 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 $5.53 ↓ -87%
MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $5.53 ↓ -87%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
AETNA AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
COVENTRY AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
MERITAIN AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
WEBTPA AETNA $9.54 ↓ -78%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE OPTIONS $15.26 ↓ -65%
GEHA UNITED HEALTHCARE $16.50 ↓ -62%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE $16.50 ↓ -62%
CIGNA EAP CIGNA $16.50 ↓ -62%
CIGNA CIGNA $16.50 ↓ -62%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $17.46 ↓ -60%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $17.88 ↓ -59%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $17.88 ↓ -59%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $17.88 ↓ -59%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $17.88 ↓ -59%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE DEERE PREMIER $22.83 ↓ -48%
USA MANAGED CARE USA MANAGED CARE $23.38 ↓ -46%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $27.50 ↓ -37%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UHC OPTUM BEHAVIORAL HEALTH $27.50 ↓ -37%
CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE CRIME VICTIMS $27.50 ↓ -37%

Visitor-reported prices

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Milrinone 20 mg/100 ml(200 mcg/ml) in 5 % dextrose intravenous piggybk at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $72.91 $0.24 – $1.57
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $263.72 not published
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $110.00 $10.26 – $28.75
MercyOne Dyersville Medical Center Dyersville $110.00 $10.87 – $32.36
MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center Cedar Falls $70.00 $16.45 – $70.00
MercyOne West Des Moines Medical Center West Des Moines $70.00 $14.07 – $70.00
MercyOne Centerville Medical Center Centerville $37.35 $10.25 – $37.35
MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center Mason City $70.00 $3.83 – $14.95

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →