Albumin, human 5 % intravenous solution at MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center

1000 4th St. SW, Mason City, IA · MercyOne · · NPI 1467537886

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

$332.50

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.

$332.50

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.

$55.68 with MEDICAL ASSOCIATES vs $217.50 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
MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $55.68 ↓ -83%
HEALTH CHOICES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $55.68 ↓ -83%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
AETNA EAP AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
AETNA AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
COVENTRY AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
MERITAIN AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
WEBTPA AETNA $114.19 ↓ -66%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE $130.50 ↓ -61%
GEHA UNITED HEALTHCARE $130.50 ↓ -61%
PREFERRED ONE PREFERRED ONE $141.38 ↓ -57%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $145.51 ↓ -56%
CIGNA EAP MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $152.25 ↓ -54%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $152.25 ↓ -54%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $152.25 ↓ -54%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $152.25 ↓ -54%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $152.25 ↓ -54%
CIGNA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $152.25 ↓ -54%
MHNET MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATES $174.00 ↓ -48%
MULTIPLAN MULTIPLAN $195.75 ↓ -41%
CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE CRIME VICTIMS $217.50 ↓ -35%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UHC OPTUM BEHAVIORAL HEALTH $217.50 ↓ -35%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $217.50 ↓ -35%

Visitor-reported prices

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Albumin, human 5 % intravenous solution at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $87.35 not published
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $332.50 $77.65 – $217.50
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $332.50 $65.82 – $166.25
MercyOne Dyersville Medical Center Dyersville $332.50 $82.22 – $244.82
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $332.50 $61.55 – $217.50
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $332.50 $76.44 – $200.00
MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center Cedar Falls $217.50 $51.11 – $217.50
MercyOne Elkader Medical Center Elkader $332.50 $111.95 – $227.33

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →