Knee MRI (with contrast) at Baylor St Luke's Medical Center

1101 Bates Avenue, Houston, TX · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1184622847

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

$4,225.20

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.

$12,072.00

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.

$323.44 with Wellpoint vs $12,072.00 with MHealth Network — 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
Wellpoint Medicaid|All Other Plans $323.44 ↓ -92%
Wellpoint Medicaid|CHIP $328.79 ↓ -92%
Wellpoint Medicaid|STARKIDS $328.79 ↓ -92%
UHC Medicaid|CHIP $329.91 ↓ -92%
UHC Medicaid|STARKIDS $329.91 ↓ -92%
UNITED Medicaid|All Other Plans $335.37 ↓ -92%
BCBS Medicaid|All Plans $339.61 ↓ -92%
CHC Medicaid|All Other Plans $378.11 ↓ -91%
Wellpoint Medicaid|STAR $440.58 ↓ -90%
UNITED Medicaid|STAR $450.44 ↓ -89%
CHC Medicaid|STAR $506.34 ↓ -88%
Renaissance Commercial|All Plans $569.76 ↓ -87%
Humana Medicare|All Other Plans $791.34 ↓ -81%
KELSEY Medicare|All Plans $791.34 ↓ -81%
Humana Medicare|TRANSPLANT $791.34 ↓ -81%
AETNA Medicare|TRANSPLANT $791.34 ↓ -81%
BCBS Medicare|All Plans $791.34 ↓ -81%
CIGNA HEALTHSPRING Medicare|HMO $791.34 ↓ -81%
CIGNA HEALTHSPRING Medicare|PPO $799.25 ↓ -81%
AETNA Medicare|All Other Plans $807.17 ↓ -81%
UHC-SecureHorizons Medicare|All Plans $807.17 ↓ -81%
Amerivantage Medicare|All Plans $815.08 ↓ -81%
BCBS - TX Commercial|MyBlue Health Exchange $816.98 ↓ -81%
SELECTCARE Medicare|All Plans $830.91 ↓ -80%
DEVOTED Medicare|All Plans $846.73 ↓ -80%
SCANHealth Medicare|All Plans $846.73 ↓ -80%
BCBS - TX Commercial|Blue Advantage Exchange $912.30 ↓ -78%
KINDRED Medicare|All Plans $949.61 ↓ -78%
BCBS - TX Commercial|Transplant $983.04 ↓ -77%
Cigna Commercial|Surefit $1,015.00 ↓ -76%
Aetna Commercial|Transplant $1,023.00 ↓ -76%
UNITED Medicaid|STARPLUS $1,025.82 ↓ -76%
UHC Medicaid|STARPLUS $1,025.82 ↓ -76%
Humana Commercial|HMO $1,050.00 ↓ -75%
Humana Commercial|PPO $1,050.00 ↓ -75%
KelseyCare Commercial|Exchange $1,068.31 ↓ -75%
Healthsmart Commercial|AP3 $1,100.00 ↓ -74%
Employer Direct Commercial|PPO $1,107.88 ↓ -74%
Cigna Commercial|HMO $1,119.00 ↓ -74%
Harris Health Commercial|ERS $1,187.01 ↓ -72%
Community Health Choice Commercial|Exchange $1,187.01 ↓ -72%
Wellpoint Commercial|Exchange $1,187.01 ↓ -72%
Superior Health Plan Commercial|All Plans $1,187.01 ↓ -72%
Community Health Choice Commercial|All Other Plans $1,187.01 ↓ -72%
Bright Health Commercial|All Plans $1,196.41 ↓ -72%
Aetna Commercial|Exchange $1,218.66 ↓ -71%
Aetna Commercial|PPO $1,320.00 ↓ -69%
TCHP Medicaid|STARKIDS $1,327.92 ↓ -69%
TCHP Medicaid|All Other Plans $1,327.92 ↓ -69%
KelseyCare Commercial|All Other Plans $1,398.60 ↓ -67%
United Commercial|Exchange $1,501.00 ↓ -64%
TCHP Medicaid|STAR $1,779.42 ↓ -58%
BCBS - TX Commercial|Premier $1,824.60 ↓ -57%
United Commercial|Charter $2,021.00 ↓ -52%
United Commercial|PPO $2,247.00 ↓ -47%
United Commercial|HMO $2,247.00 ↓ -47%
NX Health Commercial|PPO $2,571.86 ↓ -39%
BCBS - TX Commercial|HMO $2,804.98 ↓ -34%
Cigna Commercial|PPO $2,812.00 ↓ -33%
BCBS - TX Commercial|PPO Trad $2,968.38 ↓ -30%
OPTUM Medicare|All Plans $3,259.44 ↓ -23%
OPTUM Medicaid|STAR $4,367.65 ↑ +3%
TCHPCHIP Medicaid|HMO $4,949.52 ↑ +17%
TCH Commercial|Transplant $5,432.40 ↑ +29%
United Commercial|Optum $5,673.84 ↑ +34%
Shell Commercial|All Plans $6,036.00 ↑ +43%
CHC Medicaid|CHIP $6,639.60 ↑ +57%
TEXASTRUECHOICE Medicaid|CHIP $6,639.60 ↑ +57%
CHC Medicaid|HMO $6,639.60 ↑ +57%
Cigna Lifesource Commercial|Transplant $7,243.20 ↑ +71%
Aetna Commercial|KelseyCare $7,363.92 ↑ +74%
Coventry Commercial|PPO $7,846.80 ↑ +86%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $7,846.80 ↑ +86%
Humana Commercial|Transplant $7,846.80 ↑ +86%
Cigna Commercial|Transplant $8,450.40 ↑ +100%
Aetna Commercial|HMO $8,450.40 ↑ +100%
Interlink Commercial|Transplant $8,450.40 ↑ +100%
Healthsmart Commercial|PPO $8,450.40 ↑ +100%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $9,054.00 ↑ +114%
OPTUM Medicaid|STARPLUS $9,973.89 ↑ +136%
USA Health Network Commercial|All Plans $10,261.20 ↑ +143%
MHealth Network Commercial|PPO $12,072.00 ↑ +186%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Knee MRI (with contrast) at other Texas hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
St. Luke's Health - The Vintage Hospital Houston $4,225.20 $323.44 – $12,072.00
HCA HOUSTON MEDICAL CENTER Houston not published $328.79 – $1,463.76
HCA HOUSTON WEST HOUSTON not published $316.97 – $1,361.64
HCA HOUSTON TOMBALL HOUSTON not published $323.44 – $1,463.76
BAYLOR UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER Dallas $2,394.58 $323.44 – $2,993.22
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - BRENHAM Brenham $2,201.09 $453.06 – $3,301.63
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - BUDA Suite 110 $2,551.43 $323.44 – $3,189.29
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - CENTENNIAL Frisco $2,394.58 $323.44 – $2,993.22

All Texas hospitals for this procedure →