External chromosome analysis 20-25 cells at CHI Memorial Hospital Chattanooga

2525 de Sales Avenue, Chattanooga, TN · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1255428736

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Feb 28, 2026 · Ingested Sep 10, 2026

$278.34

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.

$658.00

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.

$110.72 with United vs $460.60 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
United Medicaid|TennCare $110.72 ↓ -60%
Peach State Medicaid|All Plans $138.18 ↓ -50%
United Commercial|Non-Options $144.61 ↓ -48%
United Commercial|Options $144.61 ↓ -48%
BCBS - ND Medicare|All Plans $150.39 ↓ -46%
Cigna Medicare|Healthspring $151.84 ↓ -45%
Humana Medicare|HMO $153.29 ↓ -45%
Amerigroup Medicare|All Plans $154.73 ↓ -44%
Amerigroup Medicaid|All Plans $156.73 ↓ -44%
Humana Medicare|All Other Plans $159.07 ↓ -43%
Humana Medicare|PPO $159.07 ↓ -43%
Employers Health Network Commercial|All Plans $216.92 ↓ -22%
Centene Commercial|Ambetter Exchange $271.87 ↓ -2%
Cigna Commercial|LocalPlus $285.59 ↑ +3%
BCBS - TN Commercial|Network S $299.27 ↑ +8%
Cigna Commercial|Open Access $318.04 ↑ +14%
BCBS - TN Medicaid|BlueCare $323.45 ↑ +16%
BCBS - TN Commercial|Network P $377.49 ↑ +36%
Aetna Commercial|Non-Gatekeeper $460.60 ↑ +65%
Aetna Commercial|Gatekeeper $460.60 ↑ +65%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
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External chromosome analysis 20-25 cells at other Tennessee hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown Nashville $657.29 $52.06 – $481.98
CHI Memorial Hospital Hixson Hixson $194.77 $110.72 – $460.60
Ascension Saint Thomas DeKalb Smithville $657.29 $87.39 – $481.98
Ascension Saint Thomas Highlands Sparta $657.29 $87.39 – $481.98
Ascension Saint Thomas River Park McMinnville $657.29 $87.39 – $481.98
Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford Murfreesboro $657.29 $130.15 – $481.98
Ascension Saint Thomas Hickman Centerville not published $130.15 – $481.98

All Tennessee hospitals for this procedure →