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Knee MRI (without contrast) at MercyOne Elkader Medical Center
901 Davidson St. NW, Elkader, IA · MercyOne · · NPI 1184645434
$3,903.25
Cash price 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.
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What you pay up front if you don't use insurance.
$6,005.00
Gross charge 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.
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The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.
$2,060.34 with BLUE CROSS - IA (WELLMARK) MEDICARE ADVANTAGE vs $4,183.94 with CLAIMDOC — 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 →
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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 ?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 ?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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| BLUE CROSS - IA (WELLMARK) MEDICARE ADVANTAGE | WELLMARK MEDICARE ADVANTAGE | $2,060.34 | ↓ -47% |
| AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE | AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE | $2,081.56 | ↓ -47% |
| HEALTH PARTNERS MEDICARE ADVANTAGE | UNITYPOINT HEALTH PARTNERS MEDICARE ADV | $2,102.38 | ↓ -46% |
| WELLPOINT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE | WELLPOINT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE | $2,123.19 | ↓ -46% |
| MEDICARE MEDICAL ASSOCIATES HEALTH PLANS | MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICARE ADVANTAGE | $2,161.62 | ↓ -45% |
| MEDIGOLD MEDICARE ADVANTAGE | MERCYONE HEALTH PLAN MEDICARE ADVANTAGE | $2,162.42 | ↓ -45% |
| UNITED HEALTHCARE MEDICARE | UNITED HEALTHCARE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE | $2,206.45 | ↓ -43% |
| IOWA TOTAL CARE | IOWA TOTAL CARE MEDICAID | $2,490.67 | ↓ -36% |
| MOLINA MEDICAID | MOLINA MEDICAID | $2,527.29 | ↓ -35% |
| WELLPOINT MEDICAID | WELLPOINT MEDICAID | $2,539.50 | ↓ -35% |
| AMISH HOSPITAL AID | AMISH HOSPITAL AID | $2,768.47 | ↓ -29% |
| WEBTPA | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| COVENTRY | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| LUCENT HEALTH | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| LUMINARE HEALTH | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| ASR HEALTH BENEFITS | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| FIRST HEALTH | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| 1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| AETNA | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| MERITAIN | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| MEDICAL MUTUAL | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| AETNA DOMESTIC | AETNA | $2,946.21 | ↓ -25% |
| GEHA | UNITED HEALTHCARE | $3,002.25 | ↓ -23% |
| UNITED HEALTHCARE | UNITED HEALTHCARE | $3,002.25 | ↓ -23% |
| CENTIVO | CENTIVO | $3,122.34 | ↓ -20% |
| MEDICAL ASSOCIATES | MEDICAL ASSOCIATES | $3,202.40 | ↓ -18% |
| HEALTH CHOICES | MEDICAL ASSOCIATES | $3,202.40 | ↓ -18% |
| AMBETTER | AMBETTER MARKETPLACE | $3,497.02 | ↓ -10% |
| HEALTH PARTNERS | HEALTH PARTNERS | $3,850.89 | ↓ -1% |
| MIDLANDS CHOICE | MIDLANDS CHOICE | $3,922.94 | ↑ +1% |
| MEDICA | MIDLANDS CHOICE | $3,922.94 | ↑ +1% |
| CIGNA | MIDLANDS CHOICE | $3,922.94 | ↑ +1% |
| CIGNA EAP | MIDLANDS CHOICE | $3,922.94 | ↑ +1% |
| MIDLANDS | MIDLANDS CHOICE | $3,922.94 | ↑ +1% |
| AUXIANT | MIDLANDS CHOICE | $3,922.94 | ↑ +1% |
| CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE | CRIME VICTIMS | $4,003.00 | ↑ +3% |
| IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH | CARE FOR YOURSELF | $4,003.00 | ↑ +3% |
| NOVA | CLAIMDOC | $4,183.94 | ↑ +7% |
| CLAIMDOC | CLAIMDOC | $4,183.94 | ↑ +7% |
Visitor-reported prices
Comments
Knee MRI (without contrast) at other Iowa hospitals
| Hospital | City | Cash price | Negotiated range |
|---|---|---|---|
| UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital | Des Moines | $3,573.02 | $59.32 – $1,313.08 |
| UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital | Waterloo | $3,312.28 | $59.32 – $2,181.96 |
| MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center | Davenport | $2,406.00 | $231.38 – $323.93 |
| MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center | Dubuque | $4,561.70 | $214.06 – $4,679.00 |
| MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center | New Hampton | $3,903.25 | $1,584.79 – $4,003.00 |
| MercyOne Clinton Medical Center | Clinton | $2,237.30 | $219.72 – $2,294.00 |
| MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center | Oelwein | $3,903.25 | $1,529.95 – $4,003.00 |
| MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center | Cedar Falls | $4,687.80 | $224.79 – $4,808.00 |