Biopsy of upper nose/throat at St. Joseph Health College Station Hospital

1604 Rock Prairie Road, College Station, TX · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1942294939

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

$15.05

Cash price

?

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.

$86.00

Gross charge

?

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.

$47.30 with Health Smart vs $10,557.04 with NX Health — same scan, same building. Share

Negotiated rates by payer
?

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
?

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
?

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
Health Smart Commercial|All Plans $47.30 ↑ +214%
Aetna Commercial|All Plans $48.16 ↑ +220%
Humana Commercial|All Plans $52.46 ↑ +249%
Multiplan Commercial|All Plans $73.10 ↑ +386%
BCBS-TX Commercial|Ref Lab $86.00 ↑ +471%
SUPERIOR Medicaid|CHIP $932.72 ↑ +6097%
UNITED Medicaid|STARKIDS $951.37 ↑ +6221%
UNITED Medicaid|All Other Plans $951.37 ↑ +6221%
SUPERIOR Medicaid|All Other Plans $979.36 ↑ +6407%
BCBS Medicaid|STARKIDS $979.36 ↑ +6407%
Wellpoint Medicaid|All Other Plans $979.36 ↑ +6407%
SUPERIOR Medicaid|STAR $1,753.51 ↑ +11551%
Wellpoint Medicaid|STAR $1,753.51 ↑ +11551%
SUPERIOR Medicaid|STARPLUS $2,061.31 ↑ +13596%
UNITED Medicaid|STARPLUS $2,098.62 ↑ +13844%
United Commercial|Exchange $2,124.00 ↑ +14013%
KELSEY Medicare|All Plans $2,719.05 ↑ +17967%
Cigna Commercial|Local Plus $2,888.00 ↑ +19089%
PGT Medicare|All Plans $3,183.36 ↑ +21052%
AETNA Medicare|All Plans $3,248.32 ↑ +21484%
BCBS Medicare|All Plans $3,248.32 ↑ +21484%
UNITED Medicare|All Plans $3,313.29 ↑ +21915%
AMERIVANTAGE Medicare|All Plans $3,345.77 ↑ +22131%
SCANHealth Medicare|All Plans $3,475.70 ↑ +22994%
BCBS-TX Commercial|Blue Premier $3,667.01 ↑ +24266%
BCBS-TX Commercial|Blue Advantage HMO $3,693.20 ↑ +24440%
ACH Commercial|All Plans $3,735.57 ↑ +24721%
BCBS-TX Commercial|HMO $3,928.94 ↑ +26006%
Cigna Commercial|All Other Plans $3,943.00 ↑ +26099%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $4,168.00 ↑ +27594%
BCBS-TX Commercial|PPO $4,321.83 ↑ +28616%
Ambetter Commercial|All Plans $4,710.06 ↑ +31196%
Wellpoint Commercial|Exchange $4,872.48 ↑ +32275%
Bright Health Commercial|All Plans $4,898.38 ↑ +32447%
Entrust Commercial|All Plans $5,699.40 ↑ +37770%
Wellpath Commercial|All Plans $6,122.90 ↑ +40584%
Ellwood Commercial|All Plans $9,744.96 ↑ +64651%
NX Health Commercial|All Plans $10,557.04 ↑ +70046%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Biopsy of upper nose/throat at other Texas hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - COLLEGE STATION College Station $2,463.14 $85.00 – $7,975.81
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - BRENHAM Brenham $2,463.14 $71.00 – $7,975.81
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - BUDA Suite 110 $2,463.14 $71.00 – $7,975.81
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE CONTINUING CARE HOSPITAL Temple $2,463.14 $886.62 – $7,975.81
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE EMERGENCY MEDICAL CENTER - CEDAR PARK Cedar Park $2,463.14 $71.00 – $7,975.81
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER HILLCREST Waco $2,463.14 $71.00 – $7,975.81
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MCLANE CHILDREN'S MEDICAL CENTER Temple $2,463.14 $71.00 – $7,975.81
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - PFLUGERVILLE Suite 100 $2,463.14 $71.00 – $7,975.81

All Texas hospitals for this procedure →