Pulse ox single at Buffalo Hospital
303 Catlin St, Buffalo, MN · Allinahealth · · NPI 1538123567
$46.59
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.
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What you pay up front if you don't use insurance.
$83.20
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.
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The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.
$6.17 with blue cross blue shield vs $83.20 with all other contracted care (a b c d e g h n o r s u) — 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 →
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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 ?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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| blue cross blue shield | bc pmap (b d o s v) | $6.17 | ↓ -87% |
| blue cross | allina health blueprint (bdoshv) | $13.21 | ↓ -72% |
| blue cross blue shield | bc state health plan (b d o s v) | $13.43 | ↓ -71% |
| blue cross blue shield of minnesota | bc premier (b d o s v) | $14.94 | ↓ -68% |
| ucare pmap (a b c d e g n o s u r h) | ucare pmap (abdmnorsuv) | $16.74 | ↓ -64% |
| blue cross blue shield | bc aehp (b d o s v) | $17.58 | ↓ -62% |
| blue cross blue shield of minnesota | bc high value/performance network (bdosv) | $18.87 | ↓ -59% |
| blue cross blue shield | bc aware/blue plus (b d o s v) | $19.87 | ↓ -57% |
| aetna | aetna elevate (bdosv) | $36.97 | ↓ -21% |
| aetna | aetna performance (bdosv) | $39.05 | ↓ -16% |
| medica health system | medica dual solutions (b d v o s) | $42.43 | ↓ -9% |
| aetna direct/indirect regional network | aetna direct/indirect regional (bdosv) | $49.32 | ↑ +6% |
| healthpartners | hpi (bdov) | $56.32 | ↑ +21% |
| united healthcare (bdohsv) | united healthcare (bdosv) | $57.32 | ↑ +23% |
| medica health system | medica elect (b d o s v) | $60.97 | ↑ +31% |
| health partners | hpi cigna (bdov) | $61.39 | ↑ +32% |
| medica | medica essentials (b d o s v) | $63.66 | ↑ +37% |
| medica mhps | medica mhps (bdosv) | $63.66 | ↑ +37% |
| americas ppo (araz)(b d n o r s v) | americas ppo (araz)(b d n o r s v) | $64.18 | ↑ +38% |
| medica ub health (b) | medica ub health (b) | $66.39 | ↑ +42% |
| medica health system | medica choice (b d o s v) | $66.99 | ↑ +44% |
| first health (a c e g h u b d n o r s) | first health (abdmnosurv) | $69.89 | ↑ +50% |
| americas ppo (araz) (b d n h o r s) | americas ppo (araz) (b d n h o r s v) | $69.89 | ↑ +50% |
| all other contracted care (a b c d e g h n o r s u) | all other contracted care (a b c d m h n o r s u v) | $83.20 | ↑ +79% |
Visitor-reported prices
Comments
Pulse ox single at other Minnesota hospitals
| Hospital | City | Cash price | Negotiated range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sanford Canby Medical Center | Canby | $118.40 | $35.83 – $133.20 |
| Sanford Westbrook Hospital | Westbrook | $89.60 | $27.12 – $100.80 |
| Sanford Bagley Medical Center | Bagley | $85.60 | $25.90 – $96.30 |
| Sanford Luverne Medical Center | Luverne | $89.60 | $27.12 – $100.80 |
| Sanford Bemidji Medical Center | Bemidji | $85.60 | $1.02 – $96.30 |
| Sanford Worthington Medical Center | Worthington | $88.80 | $1.00 – $99.90 |
| Sanford Tracy Hospital | Tracy | $89.60 | $27.12 – $100.80 |
| Sanford Thief River Falls Medical Center | Thief River Falls | $94.40 | $40.53 – $106.20 |