Arthrocentesis/aspiration/inj major joint/bursa without Ultrasound guidance (both sides) at SSM Health St. Joseph Hospital- Wentzville

500 Medical Drive, Wentzville, MO · SSM Health · · NPI 1851833305

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Apr 1, 2026 · Ingested Sep 10, 2026

$1,824.35

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.

$3,317.00

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.

$48.93 with BCBS vs $3,886.00 with Oscar — 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
BCBS Anthem Pathway Exchange $48.93 ↓ -97%
BCBS Anthem Blue Access Choice PPO $50.27 ↓ -97%
BCBS Anthem Blue Preferred HMO/POS $50.51 ↓ -97%
BCBS Anthem Blue Access PPO $54.48 ↓ -97%
UnitedHealthCare St. Louis University Employee $541.00 ↓ -70%
UnitedHealthCare All Commercial Plans $719.00 ↓ -61%
UnitedHealthCare Options PPO $932.00 ↓ -49%
Healthlink Employers Choice All Commercial Plans $1,216.00 ↓ -33%
Aetna Carelink Other Commercial Plan $1,444.00 ↓ -21%
Cigna OAP Other Commercial Plan $2,004.00 ↑ +10%
Healthlink HMO $2,024.00 ↑ +11%
Aetna NBD Other Commercial Plan $2,131.00 ↑ +17%
Ambetter Exchange $2,167.00 ↑ +19%
Aetna All Commercial Plans $2,414.00 ↑ +32%
Oscar Exchange $3,886.00 ↑ +113%

Visitor-reported prices

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Arthrocentesis/aspiration/inj major joint/bursa without Ultrasound guidance (both sides) at other Missouri hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
SSM Health St. Joseph Hospital - Lake Saint Louis Lake Saint Louis $1,824.35 $48.93 – $2,167.00
SSM Health DePaul Hospital - St. Louis Bridgeton $1,824.35 $48.93 – $2,167.00
SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital Saint Louis $966.35 $56.18 – $1,632.00
SSM Health St. Joseph Hospital - St. Charles Saint Charles $1,824.35 $48.93 – $2,167.00
SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital - St. Louis Richmond Heights $1,824.35 $48.93 – $2,167.00
SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital - Jefferson City Jefferson City $646.80 $305.76 – $2,277.00
Mercy Hospital Aurora Aurora $364.65 $33.04 – $387.54
Mercy Hospital Lincoln Troy $825.50 $251.65 – $387.54

All Missouri hospitals for this procedure →