Contrast x-ray of brain at St. Anne Hospital

16251 Sylvester Rd SW, Burien, WA · Vmfh · · NPI 1558333682

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Feb 28, 2026 · Ingested Sep 17, 2026

$904.56

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.

$2,962.29

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.

$397.50 with SoundPath vs $2,718.82 with First Choice — 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
SoundPath Medicare|All Plans $397.50 ↓ -56%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $397.50 ↓ -56%
Optum Medicare|All Plans $401.48 ↓ -56%
BCBS - Regence Medicare|All Plans $409.43 ↓ -55%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $409.43 ↓ -55%
BCBS - Premera Medicare|All Plans $409.43 ↓ -55%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $425.32 ↓ -53%
Molina Medicare|All Plans $429.30 ↓ -53%
United Medicare|All Plans $429.30 ↓ -53%
Amerigroup Medicare|All Plans $433.27 ↓ -52%
Seattle Medical Group Medicare|All Plans $457.12 ↓ -49%
Sound Family Medicine Commercial|All Plans $755.25 ↓ -17%
Molina Commercial|Marketplace Exchange $763.20 ↓ -16%
Coordinated Care Commercial|Ambetter Exchange $787.05 ↓ -13%
Cigna Commercial|All Plans $934.73 ↑ +3%
Uniform Medical Plan Commercial|All Plans $950.46 ↑ +5%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|LifeWise Primary Exchange $1,030.71 ↑ +14%
BCBS - Regence Commercial|All Plans $1,089.84 ↑ +20%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|All Other Plans $1,166.11 ↑ +29%
Kaiser Commercial|PPO $1,273.79 ↑ +41%
Aetna Commercial|AWH $1,383.30 ↑ +53%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $1,602.96 ↑ +77%
United Commercial|Cascade Care $1,602.96 ↑ +77%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $1,629.75 ↑ +80%
Kaiser Commercial|HMO $1,777.38 ↑ +96%
Aetna Commercial|Rental $2,132.85 ↑ +136%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $2,666.07 ↑ +195%
First Choice Commercial|All Plans $2,718.82 ↑ +201%

Visitor-reported prices

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Contrast x-ray of brain at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane $2,833.60 $388.77 – $1,374.66
Central Medical Center Seattle $1,433.60 $358.00 – $358.00
Providence Regional Medical Center Everett - Colby Campus Everett $1,287.00 $165.53 – $1,603.77
St. Michael Medical Center Silverdale $1,307.41 $1,736.41 – $2,666.07
St. Anthony Hospital Gig Harbor $900.98 $934.73 – $2,560.63
St. Joseph Medical Center Tacoma $981.11 $934.73 – $2,560.63
St. Elizabeth Hospital Enumclaw $1,046.77 $204.25 – $2,666.07
Virginia Mason Medical Center Seattle $1,424.94 $1.72 – $446.29

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →