Cytopathology cervical/vaginal thin layer auto screen/manual rescreen/review 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

$78.00

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.

$120.00

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.

$25.79 with IOWA TOTAL CARE vs $120.00 with UNITED HEALTHCARE — 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 $25.79 ↓ -67%
MOLINA MEDICAID MOLINA MEDICAID $26.04 ↓ -67%
MEDICARE MEDICAL ASSOCIATES HEALTH PLANS MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $26.08 ↓ -67%
AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $26.08 ↓ -67%
MEDIGOLD MEDICARE ADVANTAGE MERCYONE HEALTH PLAN MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $26.08 ↓ -67%
WELLPOINT MEDICAID WELLPOINT MEDICAID $26.14 ↓ -66%
BLUE CROSS - IA (WELLMARK) MEDICARE ADVANTAGE WELLMARK MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $26.34 ↓ -66%
SOUTH COUNTRY HEALTH ALLIANCE MEDICARE SOUTH COUNTRY MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $26.60 ↓ -66%
UNITED HEALTHCARE MEDICARE UNITED HEALTHCARE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $26.60 ↓ -66%
GEHA UNITED HEALTHCARE $26.61 ↓ -66%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE $26.61 ↓ -66%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $26.61 ↓ -66%
HEALTH PARTNERS MEDICARE ADVANTAGE UNITYPOINT HEALTH PARTNERS MEDICARE ADV $26.88 ↓ -66%
WELLPOINT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE WELLPOINT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $27.14 ↓ -65%
MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $30.72 ↓ -61%
HEALTH CHOICES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $30.72 ↓ -61%
CENTIVO CENTIVO $32.73 ↓ -58%
OSCAR OSCAR $35.07 ↓ -55%
AMISH HOSPITAL AID AMISH HOSPITAL AID $35.39 ↓ -55%
AMBETTER AMBETTER MARKETPLACE $44.70 ↓ -43%
CLAIMDOC CLAIMDOC $53.49 ↓ -31%
NOVA CLAIMDOC $53.49 ↓ -31%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
AETNA AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
COVENTRY AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
MERITAIN AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
AETNA EAP AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
WEBTPA AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND AETNA $63.00 ↓ -19%
PREFERRED ONE PREFERRED ONE $78.00 ↑ +0%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $80.28 ↑ +3%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $84.00 ↑ +8%
CIGNA EAP MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $84.00 ↑ +8%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $84.00 ↑ +8%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $84.00 ↑ +8%
CIGNA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $84.00 ↑ +8%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $84.00 ↑ +8%
MHNET MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATES $96.00 ↑ +23%
MULTIPLAN MULTIPLAN $108.00 ↑ +38%
CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE CRIME VICTIMS $120.00 ↑ +54%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UHC OPTUM BEHAVIORAL HEALTH $120.00 ↑ +54%

Visitor-reported prices

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Cytopathology cervical/vaginal thin layer auto screen/manual rescreen/review at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $79.95 $26.61 – $123.00
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $79.95 $26.34 – $123.00
MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center Cedar Falls $220.35 $25.79 – $240.69
MercyOne West Des Moines Medical Center West Des Moines $266.00 $25.79 – $266.00
MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center Des Moines $172.90 $25.79 – $266.00
MercyOne Centerville Medical Center Centerville $123.00 $26.61 – $123.00
MercyOne Newton Medical Center Newton $79.95 $25.79 – $123.00
MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center Waterloo $220.35 $25.79 – $240.69

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →