healthcosts.net

Neck (Cervical Spine) MRI (without contrast) at MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center

201 8th Ave SE, Oelwein, IA · MercyOne · · NPI 1528009511

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

$2,547.35

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.

Full explanation →

What you pay up front if you don't use insurance.

$3,919.00

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.

Full explanation →

The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.

$1,497.84 with MEDICARE MEDICAL ASSOCIATES HEALTH PLANS vs $3,919.00 with IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH — same scan, same building. Share

Negotiated rates by payer
?

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
MEDICARE MEDICAL ASSOCIATES HEALTH PLANS MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $1,497.84 ↓ -41%
IOWA TOTAL CARE IOWA TOTAL CARE MEDICAID $1,519.00 ↓ -40%
MOLINA MEDICAID MOLINA MEDICAID $1,541.34 ↓ -39%
WELLPOINT MEDICAID WELLPOINT MEDICAID $1,548.79 ↓ -39%
BLUE CROSS - IA (WELLMARK) MEDICARE ADVANTAGE WELLMARK MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $1,590.33 ↓ -38%
HEALTH PARTNERS MEDICARE ADVANTAGE UNITYPOINT HEALTH PARTNERS MEDICARE ADV $1,622.86 ↓ -36%
WELLPOINT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE WELLPOINT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $1,638.93 ↓ -36%
MEDIGOLD MEDICARE ADVANTAGE MERCYONE HEALTH PLAN MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $1,669.10 ↓ -34%
UNITED HEALTHCARE MEDICARE UNITED HEALTHCARE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $1,703.20 ↓ -33%
AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $1,847.81 ↓ -27%
AMISH HOSPITAL AID AMISH HOSPITAL AID $2,137.03 ↓ -16%
CENTIVO CENTIVO $2,410.19 ↓ -5%
AMBETTER AMBETTER MARKETPLACE $2,699.41 ↑ +6%
GEHA UNITED HEALTHCARE $2,782.49 ↑ +9%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE $2,782.49 ↑ +9%
MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $2,884.38 ↑ +13%
HEALTH CHOICES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $2,884.38 ↑ +13%
NOVA CLAIMDOC $3,229.65 ↑ +27%
CLAIMDOC CLAIMDOC $3,229.65 ↑ +27%
WEBTPA AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
COVENTRY AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
AETNA AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
MERITAIN AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
AETNA EAP AETNA $3,601.56 ↑ +41%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $3,770.08 ↑ +48%
MULTIPLAN MULTIPLAN $3,801.43 ↑ +49%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE $3,840.62 ↑ +51%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE $3,840.62 ↑ +51%
CIGNA MIDLANDS CHOICE $3,840.62 ↑ +51%
CIGNA EAP MIDLANDS CHOICE $3,840.62 ↑ +51%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE $3,840.62 ↑ +51%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE $3,840.62 ↑ +51%
CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE CRIME VICTIMS $3,919.00 ↑ +54%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $3,919.00 ↑ +54%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Neck (Cervical Spine) MRI (without contrast) at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $3,575.08 $64.86 – $1,313.84
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo $1,183.88 $64.86 – $779.88
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $2,547.35 $1,551.53 – $3,919.00
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $3,138.85 $219.72 – $4,829.00
MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center Cedar Falls $3,125.20 $224.79 – $4,808.00
MercyOne Elkader Medical Center Elkader $2,547.35 $2,017.11 – $4,096.14
MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center Des Moines $2,585.70 $225.21 – $3,978.00
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $1,594.80 $231.38 – $323.93

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →