Mra, w/o&w/dye, spinal canal 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

$316.40

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.

$904.00

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.

$244.08 with OPTUM vs $2,812.00 with Cigna — 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
OPTUM Medicare|All Plans $244.08 ↓ -23%
Renaissance Commercial|All Plans $257.55 ↓ -19%
OPTUM Medicaid|STAR $327.07 ↑ +3%
Humana Medicare|TRANSPLANT $357.71 ↑ +13%
KELSEY Medicare|All Plans $357.71 ↑ +13%
BCBS Medicare|All Plans $357.71 ↑ +13%
CIGNA HEALTHSPRING Medicare|HMO $357.71 ↑ +13%
Humana Medicare|All Other Plans $357.71 ↑ +13%
AETNA Medicare|TRANSPLANT $357.71 ↑ +13%
CIGNA HEALTHSPRING Medicare|PPO $361.29 ↑ +14%
AETNA Medicare|All Other Plans $364.86 ↑ +15%
UHC-SecureHorizons Medicare|All Plans $364.86 ↑ +15%
Amerivantage Medicare|All Plans $368.44 ↑ +16%
TCHPCHIP Medicaid|HMO $370.64 ↑ +17%
SELECTCARE Medicare|All Plans $375.60 ↑ +19%
SCANHealth Medicare|All Plans $382.75 ↑ +21%
DEVOTED Medicare|All Plans $382.75 ↑ +21%
TCH Commercial|Transplant $406.80 ↑ +29%
United Commercial|Optum $424.88 ↑ +34%
KINDRED Medicare|All Plans $429.25 ↑ +36%
Shell Commercial|All Plans $452.00 ↑ +43%
BCBS - TX Commercial|MyBlue Health Exchange $458.22 ↑ +45%
KelseyCare Commercial|Exchange $482.91 ↑ +53%
BCBS - TX Commercial|Blue Advantage Exchange $492.59 ↑ +56%
CHC Medicaid|HMO $497.20 ↑ +57%
CHC Medicaid|CHIP $497.20 ↑ +57%
TEXASTRUECHOICE Medicaid|CHIP $497.20 ↑ +57%
Employer Direct Commercial|PPO $500.79 ↑ +58%
Wellpoint Commercial|Exchange $536.57 ↑ +70%
Harris Health Commercial|ERS $536.57 ↑ +70%
Superior Health Plan Commercial|All Plans $536.57 ↑ +70%
Community Health Choice Commercial|Exchange $536.57 ↑ +70%
Community Health Choice Commercial|All Other Plans $536.57 ↑ +70%
Cigna Lifesource Commercial|Transplant $542.40 ↑ +71%
Aetna Commercial|Exchange $550.87 ↑ +74%
Coventry Commercial|PPO $587.60 ↑ +86%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $587.60 ↑ +86%
Humana Commercial|Transplant $587.60 ↑ +86%
Bright Health Commercial|All Plans $615.81 ↑ +95%
Healthsmart Commercial|PPO $632.80 ↑ +100%
Interlink Commercial|Transplant $632.80 ↑ +100%
Cigna Commercial|Transplant $632.80 ↑ +100%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $678.00 ↑ +114%
OPTUM Medicaid|STARPLUS $746.89 ↑ +136%
USA Health Network Commercial|All Plans $768.40 ↑ +143%
BCBS - TX Commercial|PPO Trad $904.00 ↑ +186%
BCBS - TX Commercial|HMO $904.00 ↑ +186%
BCBS - TX Commercial|Premier $904.00 ↑ +186%
MHealth Network Commercial|PPO $904.00 ↑ +186%
Aetna Commercial|KelseyCare $950.00 ↑ +200%
Cigna Commercial|Surefit $1,015.00 ↑ +221%
Aetna Commercial|Transplant $1,023.00 ↑ +223%
Humana Commercial|PPO $1,050.00 ↑ +232%
Humana Commercial|HMO $1,050.00 ↑ +232%
Healthsmart Commercial|AP3 $1,100.00 ↑ +248%
Cigna Commercial|HMO $1,119.00 ↑ +254%
Aetna Commercial|HMO $1,143.00 ↑ +261%
NX Health Commercial|PPO $1,162.56 ↑ +267%
Aetna Commercial|PPO $1,320.00 ↑ +317%
KelseyCare Commercial|All Other Plans $1,398.60 ↑ +342%
United Commercial|Exchange $1,501.00 ↑ +374%
United Commercial|Charter $2,021.00 ↑ +539%
United Commercial|PPO $2,247.00 ↑ +610%
United Commercial|HMO $2,247.00 ↑ +610%
Cigna Commercial|PPO $2,812.00 ↑ +789%

Visitor-reported prices

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Mra, w/o&w/dye, spinal canal at other Texas hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
St. Luke's Health - The Vintage Hospital Houston $316.40 $244.08 – $1,398.60
HCA HOUSTON MEDICAL CENTER Houston not published $672.06 – $699.43
HCA HOUSTON WEST HOUSTON not published $672.06 – $699.43
HCA HOUSTON TOMBALL HOUSTON not published $672.06 – $699.43
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE EMERGENCY MEDICAL CENTER - CEDAR PARK Cedar Park $1,590.76 $332.94 – $2,386.13
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - MCKINNEY McKinney $1,590.76 $332.94 – $2,149.00
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - FRISCO AT PGA PARKWAY Frisco $1,590.76 $332.94 – $2,149.00
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MCLANE CHILDREN'S MEDICAL CENTER Temple $1,590.76 $332.94 – $2,577.00

All Texas hospitals for this procedure →