Puncture spinal lumbar diagnostic at Abbott Northwestern Hospital

800 E 28th Street. Minneapolis, MN 55407, MN · Allinahealth · · NPI 1760446256

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Jun 16, 2026 · Ingested Sep 17, 2026

$503.47

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.

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What you pay up front if you don't use insurance.

$1,048.90

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.

$170.54 with ucare pmap (a b c d e g n o s u r h) vs $1,733.71 with hpi-cigna — 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
ucare pmap (a b c d e g n o s u r h) ucare pmap (abdmnorsuv) $170.54 ↓ -66%
blue cross blue shield of minnesota bc pmap (amu) $178.29 ↓ -65%
medica health system medica pmap (a) $188.17 ↓ -63%
united healthcare (a) united healthcare (a) $271.00 ↓ -46%
aetna aetna elevate (amu) $298.78 ↓ -41%
aetna aetna performance (amu) $317.85 ↓ -37%
blue cross blue shield of minnesota bc state health plan (a) $340.27 ↓ -32%
blue cross blue shield of minnesota bc premier (a) $361.25 ↓ -28%
medica dual solutions (a u) medica dual solutions (a u) $376.33 ↓ -25%
bcbs bc aehp (a) $424.97 ↓ -16%
blue cross blue shield of minnesota bc high value/performance network (a) $456.19 ↓ -9%
aetna direct network aetna direct network (amu) $463.13 ↓ -8%
blue cross blue shield of minnesota bc aware/blue plus (a m u) $497.54 ↓ -1%
americas ppo (araz)(a m u) americas ppo (araz)(a m u) $567.21 ↑ +13%
medica ubh (a) medica ubh (a) $593.32 ↑ +18%
medica health system medica elect (a) $629.43 ↑ +25%
health partners hpi medicare (amu) $630.63 ↑ +25%
medica medica essentials (a) $656.04 ↑ +30%
medica mhps medica mhps (a) $657.14 ↑ +31%
all other medicaid all other medicaid (a) $672.53 ↑ +34%
medicaid medicaid ma (a) $672.53 ↑ +34%
medica ubh pmap medica ubh pmap (a) $678.08 ↑ +35%
health partners hpi pmap (amu) $689.02 ↑ +37%
allina aetna medicare (a) allina aetna medicare (a) $691.10 ↑ +37%
medica health system medica choice (a) $691.64 ↑ +37%
first health (a c e g h u b d n o r s) first health (abdmnosurv) $711.98 ↑ +41%
medicare medicare (a) $727.47 ↑ +44%
medicare other all other medicare (a) $727.47 ↑ +44%
bcbs bc medicare (a) $763.84 ↑ +52%
medica medica medicare (a) $763.84 ↑ +52%
hennepin health hennepin health (a) $766.68 ↑ +52%
uhc ubh pmap uhc ubh pmap (a) $840.66 ↑ +67%
health partners hpi (a) $1,590.56 ↑ +216%
hpi-cigna hpi cigna (a) $1,733.71 ↑ +244%

Visitor-reported prices

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Puncture spinal lumbar diagnostic at other Minnesota hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Sanford Westbrook Hospital Westbrook $992.80 $300.45 – $1,116.90
Sanford Bagley Medical Center Bagley $1,302.40 $394.14 – $1,465.20
Sanford Wheaton Wheaton $1,243.20 $376.22 – $1,398.60
Sanford Luverne Medical Center Luverne $1,175.20 $355.64 – $1,322.10
Sanford Bemidji Medical Center Bemidji $1,302.40 $498.90 – $1,465.20
Sanford Worthington Medical Center Worthington $913.60 $434.61 – $1,008.90
Sanford Tracy Hospital Tracy $992.80 $300.45 – $1,116.90
Sanford Thief River Falls Medical Center Thief River Falls $1,176.80 $505.29 – $1,323.90

All Minnesota hospitals for this procedure →