Brain MRI (with contrast) at St. Joseph Health Madison Hospital

100 West Cross Street, Madisonville, TX · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1780731737

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

$891.63

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.

$5,095.00

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.

$461.69 with SUPERIOR vs $5,095.00 with BCBS-TX — 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
SUPERIOR Medicaid|CHIP $461.69 ↓ -48%
UNITED Medicaid|All Other Plans $470.92 ↓ -47%
UNITED Medicaid|STARKIDS $470.92 ↓ -47%
BCBS Medicaid|STARKIDS $484.77 ↓ -46%
SUPERIOR Medicaid|All Other Plans $484.77 ↓ -46%
PGT Medicare|All Plans $649.11 ↓ -27%
BCBS Medicare|All Plans $662.35 ↓ -26%
AETNA Medicare|All Plans $662.35 ↓ -26%
SUPERIOR Medicaid|STAR $669.45 ↓ -25%
UNITED Medicare|All Plans $675.60 ↓ -24%
AMERIVANTAGE Medicare|All Plans $682.23 ↓ -23%
SCANHealth Medicare|All Plans $708.72 ↓ -21%
Ambetter Commercial|All Plans $960.41 ↑ +8%
Wellpoint Commercial|Exchange $993.53 ↑ +11%
BCBS-TX Commercial|Blue Advantage HMO $1,076.82 ↑ +21%
SUPERIOR Medicaid|STARPLUS $1,144.99 ↑ +28%
UNITED Medicaid|STARPLUS $1,168.08 ↑ +31%
Cigna Commercial|Local Plus $1,169.00 ↑ +31%
BCBS-TX Commercial|Blue Premier $1,244.83 ↑ +40%
BCBS-TX Commercial|HMO $1,248.65 ↑ +40%
Wellpoint Medicaid|All Other Plans $1,283.94 ↑ +44%
Humana Commercial|All Plans $1,450.00 ↑ +63%
BCBS-TX Commercial|PPO $1,466.30 ↑ +64%
Wellpoint Medicaid|STAR $1,765.42 ↑ +98%
Bright Health Commercial|All Plans $1,904.52 ↑ +114%
Ellwood Commercial|All Plans $1,987.05 ↑ +123%
United Commercial|Exchange $2,011.00 ↑ +126%
Entrust Commercial|All Plans $2,139.90 ↑ +140%
NX Health Commercial|All Plans $2,152.64 ↑ +141%
Health Smart Commercial|All Plans $2,802.25 ↑ +214%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $3,057.00 ↑ +243%
Cigna Commercial|All Other Plans $3,260.80 ↑ +266%
Aetna Commercial|All Plans $3,362.70 ↑ +277%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $3,947.00 ↑ +343%
PHCS Commercial|All Plans $4,330.75 ↑ +386%
Multiplan Commercial|All Plans $4,585.50 ↑ +414%
BCBS-TX Commercial|Ref Lab $5,095.00 ↑ +471%

Visitor-reported prices

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Brain MRI (with contrast) at other Texas hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
BAYLOR UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER Dallas $2,224.96 $278.66 – $2,781.20
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - BRENHAM Brenham $2,163.67 $445.36 – $3,245.51
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - BUDA Suite 110 $2,554.03 $278.66 – $3,192.54
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - CENTENNIAL Frisco $2,224.96 $278.66 – $2,781.20
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER - COLLEGE STATION College Station $2,163.67 $298.17 – $3,245.51
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE CONTINUING CARE HOSPITAL Temple $2,163.67 $278.66 – $3,245.51
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE EMERGENCY MEDICAL CENTER - CEDAR PARK Cedar Park $2,554.03 $278.66 – $3,831.05
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE ALL SAINTS MEDICAL CENTER - FORT WORTH Fort Worth $2,224.96 $278.66 – $2,781.20

All Texas hospitals for this procedure →