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Carotid Artery Ultrasound (Duplex) at Sanford Thief River Falls Medical Center

3001 Sanford Pkwy, Thief River Falls, MN · Sanford Health · · NPI 1043218753

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Mar 4, 2026 · Ingested Aug 12, 2026

$981.60

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.

$1,227.00

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.

$253.81 with Primewest vs $1,153.38 with Medica — 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
Primewest Medicaid Managed Care $253.81 ↓ -74%
Ucare Medicaid Managed Care $253.81 ↓ -74%
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota PMAP $421.47 ↓ -57%
Sanford Health Plan Align Medicare Replacement $466.26 ↓ -53%
Ucare Medicare Replacement $500.62 ↓ -49%
Aetna Medicare Replacement $505.52 ↓ -49%
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota Medicare Replacement $505.52 ↓ -49%
Great Plains Medicare Advantage Medicare Replacement $505.52 ↓ -49%
Health Partners Medicare Replacement $505.52 ↓ -49%
United Healthcare Medicare Replacement $505.52 ↓ -49%
Primewest Medicare Replacement $515.34 ↓ -48%
Sanford Health Plan Group Health/TRUE $657.43 ↓ -33%
Sanford Health Plan SD Exchange True $657.43 ↓ -33%
Security Health Plan Commercial $674.85 ↓ -31%
Sanford Health Plan Commercial/ND Pers $773.38 ↓ -21%
Sanford Health Plan SD Exchange Commercial $773.38 ↓ -21%
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota Commercial/Federal $847.86 ↓ -14%
Health Partners Commercial $993.87 ↑ +1%
United Healthcare Commercial + Top 20 $1,024.55 ↑ +4%
Aetna Commercial $1,066.26 ↑ +9%
Ucare Commercial $1,078.04 ↑ +10%
Medica Choice $1,078.53 ↑ +10%
Cigna Commercial $1,104.30 ↑ +13%
First Choice Health Network Commercial $1,104.30 ↑ +13%
Healthez Commercial $1,104.30 ↑ +13%
Multiplan Commercial $1,104.30 ↑ +13%
Medica Elect $1,153.38 ↑ +18%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
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Carotid Artery Ultrasound (Duplex) at other Minnesota hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Sanford Behavioral Health Thief River Falls Thief River Falls $981.60 $253.81 – $1,104.30
Sanford Canby Medical Center Canby $1,212.00 $253.81 – $1,363.50
Sanford Westbrook Hospital Westbrook $1,245.60 $253.81 – $1,401.30
Sanford Bagley Medical Center Bagley $1,036.00 $253.81 – $1,165.50
Sanford Wheaton Wheaton $1,078.40 $253.81 – $1,213.20
Sanford Luverne Medical Center Luverne $1,244.80 $253.81 – $1,400.40
Sanford Bemidji Medical Center Bemidji $1,036.00 $176.78 – $1,165.50
Sanford Worthington Medical Center Worthington $1,120.80 $180.60 – $1,260.90

All Minnesota hospitals for this procedure →