Brace ank aftr bioskn med lg at MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center

3421 W. 9th St, Waterloo, IA · MercyOne · · NPI 1700827896

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

$55.82

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.

$85.87

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.

$9.15 with MEDICAL ASSOCIATES vs $38.95 with UNITED HEALTHCARE — 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
MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $9.15 ↓ -84%
HEALTH CHOICES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $9.15 ↓ -84%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE $21.62 ↓ -61%
GEHA UNITED HEALTHCARE $21.62 ↓ -61%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $25.55 ↓ -54%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $27.65 ↓ -50%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $27.65 ↓ -50%
CIGNA EAP MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $27.65 ↓ -50%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $27.65 ↓ -50%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $27.65 ↓ -50%
CIGNA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $27.65 ↓ -50%
MERITAIN AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
WEBTPA AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
AETNA EAP AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
COVENTRY AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
AETNA AETNA $34.78 ↓ -38%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE DEERE PREMIER $36.22 ↓ -35%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $38.95 ↓ -30%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UHC OPTUM BEHAVIORAL HEALTH $38.95 ↓ -30%

Visitor-reported prices

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Brace ank aftr bioskn med lg at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo $271.20 $67.59 – $172.00
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $16.20 not published
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $55.82 $13.91 – $38.95
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $66.25 $40.35 – $101.92
MercyOne Dyersville Medical Center Dyersville $55.82 $32.46 – $96.66
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $55.82 $24.30 – $85.87
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $55.82 $14.89 – $38.95
MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center Cedar Falls $55.82 $9.15 – $38.95

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →