Diathermy eg microwave at Ascension Providence

6901 Medical Pkwy, Waco, TX · Ascension · · NPI 1093708679

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Jan 1, 2026 · Ingested Sep 8, 2026

not published by hospital

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.

not published by hospital

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.

$6.83 with TRICARE vs $17.81 with BCBS PPO — 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
TRICARE 877_TRICARE OUTPATIENT 20250101 $6.83
TRICARE 986_TRICARE INPATIENT 20251001 $6.83
VA 887_VETERANS ADMINISTRATION OUTPATIENT 20250101 $6.83
VA 992_VETERANS ADMINISTRATION INPATIENT 20251001 $6.83
ASCENSION COMPLETE MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 920_MEDICARE ADVANTAGE ASCENSION COMPLETE OUTPATIENT 20250101 $6.83
ASCENSION COMPLETE MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 995_MEDICARE ADVANTAGE ASCENSION COMPLETE INPATIENT 20251001 $6.83
MEDICARE ADVANTAGE 100 PERCENT 879_MEDICARE ADVANTAGE 100% OUTPATIENT 20250101 $6.83
MEDICARE ADVANTAGE 100 PERCENT 988_MEDICARE ADVANTAGE 100% INPATIENT 20251001 $6.83
WELLCARE ALLWELL MEDICARE ADVANTAGE 918_WELLCARE ALLWELL MEDICARE ADVANTAGE OUTPATIENT 20250101 $6.83
WELLCARE ALLWELL MEDICARE ADVANTAGE 994_WELLCARE ALLWELL MEDICARE ADVANTAGE INPATIENT 20251001 $6.83
UHC MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 883_MEDICARE ADVANTAGE UNITED HEALTHCARE OUTPATIENT 20250101 $6.97
AETNA MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 880_MEDICARE ADVANTAGE AETNA OUTPATIENT 20250101 $6.97
AETNA MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 989_MEDICARE ADVANTAGE AETNA INPATIENT 20251001 $6.97
UHC MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 991_MEDICARE ADVANTAGE UNITED HEALTHCARE INPATIENT 20251001 $6.97
SWHP MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 990_MEDICARE ADVANTAGE SCOTT AND WHITE INPATIENT 20251001 $7.03
SWHP MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 882_MEDICARE ADVANTAGE SCOTT AND WHITE OUTPATIENT 20250101 $7.03
SMARTHEALTH 875_SMARTHEALTH OUTPATIENT 20250101 $9.56
SMARTHEALTH 984_SMARTHEALTH INPATIENT 20251001 $9.56
SUPERIOR AMBETTER 876_SUPERIOR AMBETTER OUTPATIENT 20250101 $10.25
GREEN IMAGING 932_GREEN IMAGING OUTPATIENT 20250101 $10.25
SUPERIOR AMBETTER 985_SUPERIOR AMBETTER INPATIENT 20251001 $10.25
BCBS MYBLUEHEALTH 872_BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD MYBLUEHEATH 20250101 $11.97
BCBS ADVANTAGE HMO 871_BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD ADVANTAGE HMO 20250101 $15.00
BCBS ESSENTIALS HMO 870_BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD HMO ESSENTIALS 20250101 $16.15
BCBS PPO 869_BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD PPO 20250101 $17.81

Visitor-reported prices

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Diathermy eg microwave at other Texas hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
St. Luke's Health - Patients Medical Center Pasadena $38.75 $10.53 – $317.00
Ascension Seton Cedar Park Hospital Cedar Park $16.51 $6.46 – $33.15
Ascension Seton Edgar B. Davis (Ascension Seton) Luling $32.13 $6.46 – $33.15
Ascension Seton Highland Lakes (Ascension Seton) Burnet $32.13 $6.46 – $33.15
Ascension Seton Medical Center Austin (Ascension Seton) Austin $32.13 $6.46 – $33.15
Ascension Seton Northwest (Ascension Seton) Austin $32.13 $6.46 – $33.15
Ascension Seton Smithville (Ascension Seton) Smithville $17.37 $6.46 – $33.15
Dell Children's Medical Center (Ascension Seton) Austin $33.78 $6.46 – $33.15

All Texas hospitals for this procedure →