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Hip X-ray 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

$352.00

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.

$440.00

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.

$125.40 with Sanford Health Plan Align vs $396.00 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 $125.40 ↓ -64%
Ucare Medicare Replacement $134.64 ↓ -62%
Aetna Medicare Replacement $135.96 ↓ -61%
Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota Medicare Replacement $135.96 ↓ -61%
Great Plains Medicare Advantage Medicare Replacement $135.96 ↓ -61%
Health Partners Medicare Replacement $135.96 ↓ -61%
United Healthcare Medicare Replacement $135.96 ↓ -61%
Primewest Medicare Replacement $138.60 ↓ -61%
Wellmark HMO $220.00 ↓ -38%
Wellmark PPO $228.80 ↓ -35%
Sanford Health Plan Group Health/True $235.75 ↓ -33%
Sanford Health Plan SD Exchange True $235.75 ↓ -33%
Security Health Plan Commercial $242.00 ↓ -31%
Sanford Health Plan Commercial/ND Pers $277.33 ↓ -21%
Sanford Health Plan SD Exchange Commercial $277.33 ↓ -21%
Health Partners State Employees $290.40 ↓ -18%
Health Partners Commercial $330.00 ↓ -6%
Medica Choice $363.00 ↑ +3%
United Healthcare Commercial + Top 20 $367.40 ↑ +4%
Aetna Commercial $382.36 ↑ +9%
Ucare Commercial $386.58 ↑ +10%
Medica Elect $388.08 ↑ +10%
First Choice Health Network Commercial $396.00 ↑ +13%
Healthez Commercial $396.00 ↑ +13%
Multiplan Commercial $396.00 ↑ +13%

Visitor-reported prices

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Hip X-ray at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $395.84 $9.92 – $145.47
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo $128.01 $9.92 – $84.33
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $283.20 $84.28 – $118.00
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $360.75 $78.07 – $555.00
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $222.30 $135.40 – $342.00
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $224.25 $80.14 – $345.00
MercyOne Dyersville Medical Center Dyersville $222.30 $129.28 – $384.96
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $222.30 $130.71 – $342.00

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →