Brain MRI (with contrast) at CHRISTUS St. Francis Cabrini Hospital

3330 Masonic Dr, Alexandria, LA · Christushealth · · NPI 1639160799

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Jan 13, 2026 · Ingested Sep 16, 2026

$713.96

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.

$2,746.00

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.

$329.52 with Healthy Blue Louisiana vs $2,334.10 with Verity Healthnet National — 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
Healthy Blue Louisiana KM $329.52 ↓ -54%
Humana Healthy Horizons KM $329.52 ↓ -54%
Louisiana Healthcare Connections KM $329.52 ↓ -54%
Amerihealth Caritas Louisiana KM $329.52 ↓ -54%
United Healthcare KM $329.52 ↓ -54%
Humana Gold Plus MM $332.92 ↓ -53%
Triwest VA MM $332.92 ↓ -53%
Humana Gold Choice MM $332.92 ↓ -53%
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana MM $339.71 ↓ -52%
Active Med PPO $339.71 ↓ -52%
Vantage Health Plan Inc. Gold Plus MM $339.71 ↓ -52%
Arcadian Health Plan MM $339.71 ↓ -52%
United Healthcare VA CCN MM $339.71 ↓ -52%
Aetna MM $339.71 ↓ -52%
Coventry First Health MM $339.71 ↓ -52%
Christus Health Med Adv MM $339.71 ↓ -52%
United Healthcare MM $346.50 ↓ -51%
Peoples Health MM $349.90 ↓ -51%
Dignity Health MM $349.90 ↓ -51%
Wellcare MM $356.70 ↓ -50%
Aetna KM $356.98 ↓ -50%
AllyAlign Health MM $373.68 ↓ -48%
American Health Medicare Advantage MM $373.68 ↓ -48%
Christus Health HIX $475.59 ↓ -33%
Blue Cross Blue Shield Of Louisiana HMO $736.86 ↑ +3%
Blue Cross Blue Shield Of Louisiana PPO $736.86 ↑ +3%
Blue Cross Blue Shield Of Louisiana Trad $736.86 ↑ +3%
United Healthcare All Payer $828.27 ↑ +16%
Aetna New Business $862.00 ↑ +21%
Aetna PPO $1,014.00 ↑ +42%
Humana Choicecare $1,341.00 ↑ +88%
Vantage Health Plan Inc. PPO $1,373.00 ↑ +92%
LSU First Choice Verity PPO $1,373.00 ↑ +92%
Cigna PPO $1,547.00 ↑ +117%
Verity HealthNet PPO $1,647.60 ↑ +131%
Healthcare Highways PPO $1,647.60 ↑ +131%
Gilsbar, Inc. Alliance PPO $1,647.60 ↑ +131%
HealthSmart Accel PPO $1,784.90 ↑ +150%
PPOplus Llc PPO $1,784.90 ↑ +150%
Multiplan PPO $1,922.20 ↑ +169%
Phcs PPO $1,922.20 ↑ +169%
Provider Select PPO $2,196.80 ↑ +208%
Health Management Network PPO $2,196.80 ↑ +208%
HealthSmart PPO $2,196.80 ↑ +208%
Five Point Credit Union PPO $2,251.00 ↑ +215%
First Health PPO $2,334.10 ↑ +227%
Verity Healthnet National PPO $2,334.10 ↑ +227%

Visitor-reported prices

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