Brace m arm board at MercyOne West Des Moines Medical Center

1755 59th Place, West Des Moines, IA · MercyOne · · NPI 1538395975

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

$69.80

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.

$69.80

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.

$5.99 with IOWA TOTAL CARE vs $36.70 with IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH — 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
IOWA TOTAL CARE IOWA TOTAL CARE MEDICAID $5.99 ↓ -91%
MOLINA MEDICAID MOLINA MEDICAID $6.05 ↓ -91%
WELLPOINT MEDICAID WELLPOINT MEDICAID $6.07 ↓ -91%
AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE AETNA MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $7.34 ↓ -89%
MEDICAL ASSOCIATES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $7.38 ↓ -89%
HEALTH CHOICES MEDICAL ASSOCIATES $7.38 ↓ -89%
CENTIVO CENTIVO $9.69 ↓ -86%
OSCAR OSCAR $9.91 ↓ -86%
1199 NATIONAL BENEFIT FUND AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
AETNA AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
AETNA DOMESTIC AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
ALLIED BENEFIT SYSTEMS AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
ASR HEALTH BENEFITS AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
CHRISTIAN BROTHER SERVICES AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
COVENTRY AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
FIRST HEALTH AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
LUCENT HEALTH AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
LUMINARE HEALTH AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
MEDICAL MUTUAL AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
MERITAIN AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
TRUSTMARK SMALL BUSINESS BENEFITS AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
WEBTPA AETNA $12.73 ↓ -82%
CIGNA CIGNA $22.02 ↓ -68%
GEHA UNITED HEALTHCARE $22.02 ↓ -68%
CIGNA EAP CIGNA $22.02 ↓ -68%
NOVA CLAIMDOC $22.02 ↓ -68%
CLAIMDOC CLAIMDOC $22.02 ↓ -68%
UNITED HEALTHCARE UNITED HEALTHCARE $22.02 ↓ -68%
HEALTH PARTNERS HEALTH PARTNERS $23.30 ↓ -67%
AUXIANT MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $23.86 ↓ -66%
MIDLANDS MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $23.86 ↓ -66%
MIDLANDS CHOICE MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $23.86 ↓ -66%
MEDICA MIDLANDS CHOICE PPO $23.86 ↓ -66%
USA MANAGED CARE USA MANAGED CARE $31.20 ↓ -55%
CRIME VICTIM ASSISTANCE CRIME VICTIMS $36.70 ↓ -47%
IOWA DEPT OF PUBLIC HEALTH CARE FOR YOURSELF $36.70 ↓ -47%

Visitor-reported prices

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Brace m arm board at other Iowa hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
MercyOne Genesis Davenport West Medical Center Davenport $23.40 not published
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center Dubuque $45.37 $7.11 – $36.70
MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center New Hampton $36.30 $11.62 – $29.36
MercyOne Dyersville Medical Center Dyersville $45.37 $13.87 – $41.31
MercyOne Clinton Medical Center Clinton $45.37 $7.11 – $36.70
MercyOne Oelwein Medical Center Oelwein $45.37 $14.03 – $36.70
MercyOne Cedar Falls Medical Center Cedar Falls $45.37 $6.36 – $36.70
MercyOne Elkader Medical Center Elkader $45.37 $18.89 – $38.36

All Iowa hospitals for this procedure →