Lower Back (Lumbar Spine) MRI (with and without contrast) at Community Medical Center

99 NJ-37, Toms River, NJ · RWJBarnabas Health · · NPI 1013010917

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Mar 4, 2026 · Ingested Sep 10, 2026

$1,007.75

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.

$4,859.00

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.

$326.00 with Cigna vs $4,445.49 with Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey — 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
Cigna Local Plus $326.00 ↓ -68%
Humana Medicare $390.30 ↓ -61%
Clover Health Medicare Advantage $390.30 ↓ -61%
Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey Medicare Advantage $390.30 ↓ -61%
Aetna Medicare $390.30 ↓ -61%
Fidelis Care Medicare Advantage $390.30 ↓ -61%
Wellpoint Medicare Advantage $390.30 ↓ -61%
United Healthcare Medicare $398.11 ↓ -60%
Cigna HMO $414.00 ↓ -59%
Cigna PPO $436.00 ↓ -57%
United Healthcare Nexus $493.70 ↓ -51%
United Healthcare Oxford Metro $493.70 ↓ -51%
Aetna HMO $553.12 ↓ -45%
Aetna PPO $553.12 ↓ -45%
United Healthcare Community Plan $603.00 ↓ -40%
United Healthcare Oxford Commercial $603.32 ↓ -40%
United Healthcare Commercial $603.32 ↓ -40%
Fidelis Care NJ Family Care $614.17 ↓ -39%
Aetna Better Health $659.85 ↓ -35%
Emblem Health Commercial $683.03 ↓ -32%
Wellcare Ambetter Health Commercial $776.70 ↓ -23%
Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey NJ Health $892.31 ↓ -11%
Amerihealth Regional Preferred $1,076.87 ↑ +7%
Amerihealth Local Value $1,076.87 ↑ +7%
Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey State Benefit Plan $1,096.67 ↑ +9%
Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey Non-Managed $1,096.67 ↑ +9%
Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey Omnia $1,096.67 ↑ +9%
Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey Managed $1,096.67 ↑ +9%
Qualcare Inc HMO/POS $2,072.00 ↑ +106%
Qualcare Inc PPO/WC $2,166.00 ↑ +115%
Wellpoint NJ Family Care $2,769.63 ↑ +175%
First Health Commercial $2,915.40 ↑ +189%
Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey Worker's Comp $4,130.15 ↑ +310%
Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey PIP $4,445.49 ↑ +341%

Visitor-reported prices

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Lower Back (Lumbar Spine) MRI (with and without contrast) at other New-jersey hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Trinitas Regional Medical Center Elizabeth $912.03 $170.42 – $1,452.87
Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center Livingston $1,029.62 $400.67 – $2,072.00
Clara Maass Medical Center Belleville $966.45 $326.00 – $2,072.00
Newark Beth Israel Medical Center Newark $1,012.12 $175.43 – $2,072.00
Jersey City Medical Center Jersey City $1,009.70 $220.55 – $2,010.00
Monmouth Medical Center Long Branch $1,063.14 $326.00 – $2,072.00
Bayshore Medical Center Holmdel $395.29 $395.29 – $4,332.00
Hackensack University Medical Center Hackensack $420.58 $336.46 – $4,332.00

All New-jersey hospitals for this procedure →