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Knee MRI (with and without contrast) at MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center

250 Mercy Drive, Dubuque, IA · MercyOne · · NPI 1659348506

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Mar 31, 2026 · Ingested Aug 3, 2026

$5,265.65

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.

$8,101.00

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.

$312.99 with IOWA TOTAL CARE vs $5,400.00 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
IOWA TOTAL CARE IOWA TOTAL CARE MEDICAID $312.99 ↓ -94%
MOLINA MEDICAID MOLINA MEDICAID $316.06 ↓ -94%
WELLPOINT MEDICAID WELLPOINT MEDICAID $317.28 ↓ -94%
MEDICARE MEDICAL ASSOCIATES HEALTH PLANS MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $339.87 ↓ -94%
AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $339.87 ↓ -94%
MEDIGOLD MEDICARE ADVANTAGE MERCYONE HEALTH PLAN MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $339.87 ↓ -94%
BLUE CROSS - IA (WELLMARK) MEDICARE ADVANTAGE WELLMARK MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $343.27 ↓ -93%
UNITED HEALTHCARE MEDICARE UNITED HEALTHCARE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $346.67 ↓ -93%
HEALTH PARTNERS MEDICARE ADVANTAGE UNITYPOINT HEALTH PARTNERS MEDICARE ADV $350.27 ↓ -93%
WELLPOINT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE WELLPOINT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $353.74 ↓ -93%
AMISH HOSPITAL AID AMISH HOSPITAL AID $461.25 ↓ -91%
OSCAR OSCAR $473.11 ↓ -91%
CENTIVO CENTIVO $543.10 ↓ -90%
AMBETTER AMBETTER MARKETPLACE $582.63 ↓ -89%
NOVA CLAIMDOC $697.08 ↓ -87%
CLAIMDOC CLAIMDOC $697.08 ↓ -87%
GEHA UNITED HEALTHCARE $828.97 ↓ -84%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE $828.97 ↓ -84%
HEALTH CHOICES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $1,399.00 ↓ -73%
PREFERRED HEALTH CHOICE PREFERRED HEALTH CHOICES $1,927.80 ↓ -63%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE EAGLE WINDOW AND DOOR $3,132.00 ↓ -41%
WPS WISCONSIN PHYSICIAN SERVICES $3,234.60 ↓ -39%
THE ALLIANCE THE ALLIANCE $3,262.14 ↓ -38%
MHNET MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATES $4,320.00 ↓ -18%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE DEERE PREMIER $4,482.00 ↓ -15%
WEBTPA AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
COVENTRY AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
AETNA AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
MERITAIN AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
AETNA EAP AETNA $4,509.00 ↓ -14%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $4,860.00 ↓ -8%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $4,860.00 ↓ -8%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $4,860.00 ↓ -8%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $4,860.00 ↓ -8%
UNITY UNITY HMO $4,860.00 ↓ -8%
CIGNA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $4,860.00 ↓ -8%
CIGNA EAP MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $4,860.00 ↓ -8%
MULTIPLAN MULTIPLAN $4,860.00 ↓ -8%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UHC OPTUM BEHAVIORAL HEALTH $5,400.00 ↑ +3%
CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE CRIME VICTIMS $5,400.00 ↑ +3%
STEPHENSON CTY HEALTH STEPHENSON COUNTY HEALTH $5,400.00 ↑ +3%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $5,400.00 ↑ +3%

Visitor-reported prices

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Knee MRI (with and without contrast) at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Finley Hospital Dubuque $2,411.53 $94.35 – $2,411.53
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $4,166.61 $94.35 – $1,531.23
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo $3,784.96 $94.35 – $2,493.34
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $2,514.00 $341.85 – $478.59
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $4,938.70 $2,026.00 – $5,065.00
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $2,603.90 $255.10 – $2,670.00
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $4,938.70 $1,935.84 – $5,065.00
MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center Cedar Falls $9,209.20 $255.10 – $9,445.00

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →