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Abdominal Ultrasound (complete) at Sanford Sheldon Medical Center

118 N 7th Ave, Sheldon, IA · Sanford Health · · NPI 1841200623

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Mar 4, 2026 · Ingested Aug 12, 2026

$983.20

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.

$1,229.00

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.

$350.27 with Sanford Health Plan Align vs $1,106.10 with Multiplan — 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
Sanford Health Plan Align Medicare Replacement $350.27 ↓ -64%
Ucare Medicare Replacement $376.07 ↓ -62%
Aetna Medicare Replacement $379.76 ↓ -61%
Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota Medicare Replacement $379.76 ↓ -61%
Great Plains Medicare Advantage Medicare Replacement $379.76 ↓ -61%
Health Partners Medicare Replacement $379.76 ↓ -61%
United Healthcare Medicare Replacement $379.76 ↓ -61%
Primewest Medicare Replacement $387.14 ↓ -61%
Wellmark HMO $614.50 ↓ -38%
Wellmark PPO $639.08 ↓ -35%
Sanford Health Plan Group Health/True $658.50 ↓ -33%
Sanford Health Plan SD Exchange True $658.50 ↓ -33%
Security Health Plan Commercial $675.95 ↓ -31%
Sanford Health Plan Commercial/ND Pers $774.64 ↓ -21%
Sanford Health Plan SD Exchange Commercial $774.64 ↓ -21%
Health Partners State Employees $811.14 ↓ -18%
Health Partners Commercial $921.75 ↓ -6%
Medica Choice $1,013.93 ↑ +3%
United Healthcare Commercial + Top 20 $1,026.22 ↑ +4%
Aetna Commercial $1,068.00 ↑ +9%
Ucare Commercial $1,079.80 ↑ +10%
Medica Elect $1,083.98 ↑ +10%
First Choice Health Network Commercial $1,106.10 ↑ +13%
Healthez Commercial $1,106.10 ↑ +13%
Multiplan Commercial $1,106.10 ↑ +13%

Visitor-reported prices

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Abdominal Ultrasound (complete) at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center Des Moines $1,186.90 $23.86 – $1,826.00
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $1,014.65 $93.79 – $1,561.00
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $692.90 $407.43 – $1,066.00
UnityPoint Health - St. Lukes Downtown Sioux City $339.49 $30.94 – $245.28
MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center Waterloo $688.35 $98.49 – $1,059.00
UnityPoint Health - St. Luke's Hospital Cedar Rapids $723.75 $35.36 – $339.26
MercyOne Elkader Medical Center Elkader $692.90 $548.67 – $1,114.18
MercyOne Newton Medical Center Newton $692.90 $98.96 – $1,066.00

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →