healthcosts.net

Liver Function Test 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

$71.50

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.

$110.00

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.

$7.92 with IOWA TOTAL CARE vs $110.00 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
IOWA TOTAL CARE IOWA TOTAL CARE MEDICAID $7.92 ↓ -89%
MOLINA MEDICAID MOLINA MEDICAID $7.99 ↓ -89%
MEDICARE MEDICAL ASSOCIATES HEALTH PLANS MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $8.01 ↓ -89%
AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $8.01 ↓ -89%
MEDIGOLD MEDICARE ADVANTAGE MERCYONE HEALTH PLAN MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $8.01 ↓ -89%
WELLPOINT MEDICAID WELLPOINT MEDICAID $8.02 ↓ -89%
BLUE CROSS - IA (WELLMARK) MEDICARE ADVANTAGE WELLMARK MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $8.09 ↓ -89%
GEHA UNITED HEALTHCARE $8.17 ↓ -89%
UNITED HEALTHCARE MEDICARE UNITED HEALTHCARE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $8.17 ↓ -89%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE $8.17 ↓ -89%
HEALTH PARTNERS MEDICARE ADVANTAGE UNITYPOINT HEALTH PARTNERS MEDICARE ADV $8.25 ↓ -88%
WELLPOINT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE WELLPOINT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $8.33 ↓ -88%
AMISH HOSPITAL AID AMISH HOSPITAL AID $10.87 ↓ -85%
OSCAR OSCAR $12.54 ↓ -82%
CENTIVO CENTIVO $13.56 ↓ -81%
AMBETTER AMBETTER MARKETPLACE $13.73 ↓ -81%
NOVA CLAIMDOC $16.42 ↓ -77%
CLAIMDOC CLAIMDOC $16.42 ↓ -77%
WEBTPA AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
COVENTRY AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
AETNA AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
MERITAIN AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
AETNA EAP AETNA $22.23 ↓ -69%
MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $25.85 ↓ -64%
HEALTH CHOICES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $25.85 ↓ -64%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $72.16 ↑ +1%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $78.10 ↑ +9%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $78.10 ↑ +9%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $78.10 ↑ +9%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $78.10 ↑ +9%
CIGNA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $78.10 ↑ +9%
CIGNA EAP MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $78.10 ↑ +9%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE DEERE PREMIER $102.30 ↑ +43%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UHC OPTUM BEHAVIORAL HEALTH $110.00 ↑ +54%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $110.00 ↑ +54%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Liver Function Test at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital Waterloo $68.56 $4.90 – $45.16
UnityPoint Health - Iowa Lutheran Hospital Des Moines $68.56 $4.90 – $25.20
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $69.00 $8.17 – $8.17
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $255.45 $7.92 – $393.00
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $110.50 $67.30 – $170.00
MercyOne Dyersville Medical Center Dyersville $110.50 $64.26 – $191.35
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $255.45 $7.92 – $393.00
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $110.50 $64.97 – $170.00

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →