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Chest X-ray (single view) at UnityPoint Health - Trinity Muscatine

1518 Mulberry, Muscatine, IA · UnityPoint Health · · NPI 1861444333

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Jan 28, 2026 · Ingested Aug 12, 2026

$206.71

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.

$258.38

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.

$8.04 with Aetna vs $228.09 with Aetna — 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
Aetna Medicare Advantage $8.04 ↓ -96%
Ambetter HMO $8.04 ↓ -96%
Blue Cross and Blue Shield Medicare Advantage $8.04 ↓ -96%
Health Alliance Medicare Advantage $8.04 ↓ -96%
Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield Medicare Advantage $8.20 ↓ -96%
Humana Medicare Advantage $8.44 ↓ -96%
Meridian Health Plan Medicare Advantage $8.44 ↓ -96%
United Healthcare Medicare Advantage $8.44 ↓ -96%
United Healthcare HMO $11.64 ↓ -94%
United Healthcare PPO $11.64 ↓ -94%
Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield HMO $14.80 ↓ -93%
Wellmark UPH Self-Funded Commercial $14.80 ↓ -93%
Cigna/Midlands Commercial $16.46 ↓ -92%
Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield PPO $17.50 ↓ -92%
Health Partners Open Network Commercial $18.55 ↓ -91%
BC Illinois Community PPO $19.69 ↓ -90%
BC Illinois Community Blue Choice $48.42 ↓ -77%
Amerigroup Managed Medicaid $76.04 ↓ -63%
Iowa Total Care Managed Medicaid $76.04 ↓ -63%
Medica Exchange Inspire Commercial $94.57 ↓ -54%
Medica Exchange Insure Commercial $105.94 ↓ -49%
Aetna HMO $216.24 ↑ +5%
Aetna PPO $228.09 ↑ +10%

Visitor-reported prices

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Chest X-ray (single view) at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $293.39 $8.04 – $107.82
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo $145.10 $8.04 – $95.58
MercyOne Elkader Medical Center Elkader $167.70 $132.79 – $269.66
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $117.60 $84.28 – $118.00
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $167.70 $102.14 – $258.00
MercyOne Dyersville Medical Center Dyersville $167.70 $97.52 – $290.40
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $167.70 $98.61 – $258.00
MercyOne Newton Medical Center Newton $593.00 $82.37 – $258.00

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →