Brain image < 4 views at Houston Methodist Clear Lake Hospital
18300 St John Drive, Nassau Bay, TX · Houstonmethodist · · NPI 1952723967
not published by hospital
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.
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What you pay up front if you don't use insurance.
not published by hospital
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.
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The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.
$401.59 with Bcbs vs $1,031.60 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 →
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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 ?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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bcbs | Medicare Managed Care - Hmo | $401.59 | — |
| Aetna | Medicare Managed Care - Hmo/Ppo | $407.62 | — |
| Unitedhealthcare | Medicare Managed Care - Hmo | $409.62 | — |
| Bcbs | Blue Advantage Exchange | $412.41 | — |
| Cigna | Texas Healthspring Medicare Managed Care - Hmo/Ppo | $413.64 | — |
| Molina Healthcare | Advantage Medicare Managed Care Plan | $421.67 | — |
| Community Health Choice | D-Snp Medicare Managed Care - Hmo | $429.70 | — |
| Procare Advantage | Medicare Managed Care - Hmo | $441.75 | — |
| Aetna | New Business Discount Other Commercial Plan | $561.96 | — |
| Aetna | Hmo/Pos/Ppo | $579.08 | — |
| Community Health Choice | Silver & Gold Exchange | $654.60 | — |
| Bcbs | All Commercial Plans | $669.32 | — |
| Optum Health | Transplant Medicare Managed Care Plan | $783.11 | — |
| Molina Healthcare | Exchange | $803.19 | — |
| Cigna | Local Plus/Surefit Hmo/Ppo | $974.00 | — |
| Cigna | Network C-24 Hmo/Ppo | $974.48 | — |
| Cigna | Pcp Optional/Pcp Required Benefit Plans Hmo | $1,031.60 | — |
Visitor-reported prices
Comments
Brain image < 4 views at other Texas hospitals
| Hospital | City | Cash price | Negotiated range |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Luke's Health - Brazosport Hospital | Lake Jackson | $438.80 | $75.23 – $752.22 |
| Ascension Providence | Waco | $207.63 | $170.41 – $590.75 |
| MEDICAL CITY DALLAS HOSPITAL | Dallas | $2,005.65 | $167.85 – $258.18 |
| MEDICAL CITY ARLINGTON HOSPITAL | RED OAK | $2,809.60 | $167.85 – $258.18 |
| MEDICAL CITY LAS COLINAS HOSPITAL | Irving | $3,723.81 | $170.41 – $258.18 |
| Adventhealth Rollins Brook | Lampasas | not published | $650.73 – $650.73 |
| CHRISTUS Children's Hospital | San Antonio | not published | $177.76 – $514.23 |
| HCA HOUSTON CLEAR LAKE | FRIENDSWOOD | not published | $167.00 – $915.16 |