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Established Patient Office Visit (level 2) 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

$167.20

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.

$209.00

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.

$35.91 with Sanford Health Plan Align vs $113.40 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 $35.91 ↓ -79%
Ucare Medicare Replacement $38.56 ↓ -77%
Aetna Medicare Replacement $38.93 ↓ -77%
Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota Medicare Replacement $38.93 ↓ -77%
Great Plains Medicare Advantage Medicare Replacement $38.93 ↓ -77%
Health Partners Medicare Replacement $38.93 ↓ -77%
United Healthcare Medicare Replacement $38.93 ↓ -77%
Primewest Medicare Replacement $39.69 ↓ -76%
Wellmark HMO $63.00 ↓ -62%
Wellmark PPO $65.52 ↓ -61%
Sanford Health Plan Group Health/True $67.51 ↓ -60%
Sanford Health Plan SD Exchange True $67.51 ↓ -60%
Security Health Plan Commercial $69.30 ↓ -59%
Sanford Health Plan Commercial/ND Pers $79.42 ↓ -53%
Sanford Health Plan SD Exchange Commercial $79.42 ↓ -53%
Health Partners State Employees $83.16 ↓ -50%
Health Partners Commercial $94.50 ↓ -43%
Medica Choice $103.95 ↓ -38%
United Healthcare Commercial + Top 20 $105.21 ↓ -37%
Aetna Commercial $109.49 ↓ -35%
Ucare Commercial $110.70 ↓ -34%
Medica Elect $111.13 ↓ -34%
First Choice Health Network Commercial $113.40 ↓ -32%
Healthez Commercial $113.40 ↓ -32%
Multiplan Commercial $113.40 ↓ -32%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
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Established Patient Office Visit (level 2) at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $83.20 $32.24 – $66.60
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo $83.20 $32.24 – $66.60
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $76.00 $1.91 – $114.00
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $69.60 not published
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $76.00 $1.91 – $12.00
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $304.20 $8.04 – $114.00
MercyOne Dyersville Medical Center Dyersville $74.10 $8.04 – $128.32
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $76.00 $8.04 – $76.00

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →