Augumentation percutaneous vertebral inc cavity creation ea addl thoracic/lumbar vertebral body 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

$8,189.50

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.

$14,890.00

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.

$245.89 with BCBS vs $13,749.00 with Aetna — 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 $245.89 ↓ -97%
BCBS Anthem Blue Access Choice PPO $252.67 ↓ -97%
BCBS Anthem Blue Preferred HMO/POS $253.87 ↓ -97%
BCBS Anthem Blue Access PPO $273.82 ↓ -97%
Cigna OAP Other Commercial Plan $3,071.00 ↓ -63%
Healthlink Employers Choice All Commercial Plans $5,327.00 ↓ -35%
Ambetter Exchange $7,033.00 ↓ -14%
UnitedHealthCare St. Louis University Employee $8,125.00 ↓ -1%
Healthlink HMO $8,861.00 ↑ +8%
UnitedHealthCare Options PPO $8,969.00 ↑ +10%
UnitedHealthCare All Commercial Plans $8,992.00 ↑ +10%
Aetna Carelink Other Commercial Plan $9,861.00 ↑ +20%
Aetna NBD Other Commercial Plan $12,133.00 ↑ +48%
Aetna All Commercial Plans $13,749.00 ↑ +68%

Visitor-reported prices

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Augumentation percutaneous vertebral inc cavity creation ea addl thoracic/lumbar vertebral body at other Missouri hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
SSM Health St. Joseph Hospital - Lake Saint Louis Lake Saint Louis $8,189.50 $245.89 – $9,861.00
SSM Health DePaul Hospital - St. Louis Bridgeton $8,189.50 $245.89 – $9,861.00
SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital Saint Louis $5,995.00 $282.34 – $9,291.00
SSM Health St. Joseph Hospital - St. Charles Saint Charles $8,189.50 $245.89 – $9,861.00
SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital - St. Louis Richmond Heights $8,189.50 $245.89 – $9,861.00
SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital - Jefferson City Jefferson City $6,152.96 $1,351.00 – $7,389.00
Mercy Hospital Carthage Carthage $1,214.85 $229.08 – $2,405.42
Mercy Orthopedic Hospital Springfield Ozark $2,616.90 not published

All Missouri hospitals for this procedure →