Contrast x-ray gallbladder at St. Francis Hospital

34515 Ninth Avenue South, Federal Way, WA · Vmfh · · NPI 1093713091

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

$211.55

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.

$674.10

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.

$198.14 with SoundPath vs $887.79 with Aetna — 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 $198.14 ↓ -6%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $198.14 ↓ -6%
Optum Medicare|All Plans $200.12 ↓ -5%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $204.08 ↓ -4%
BCBS - Regence Medicare|All Plans $204.08 ↓ -4%
BCBS - Premera Medicare|All Plans $204.08 ↓ -4%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $212.01 ↑ +0%
United Medicare|All Plans $213.99 ↑ +1%
Molina Medicare|All Plans $213.99 ↑ +1%
Amerigroup Medicare|All Plans $215.97 ↑ +2%
CHPW Medicare|All Plans $227.86 ↑ +8%
Seattle Medical Group Medicare|All Plans $227.86 ↑ +8%
Sound Family Medicine Commercial|All Plans $376.47 ↑ +78%
Molina Commercial|Marketplace Exchange $380.43 ↑ +80%
Coordinated Care Commercial|Ambetter Exchange $392.32 ↑ +85%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|LifeWise Primary Exchange $425.32 ↑ +101%
First Choice Commercial|All Plans $444.60 ↑ +110%
Uniform Medical Plan Commercial|All Plans $454.09 ↑ +115%
Aetna Commercial|Rental $485.36 ↑ +129%
Kaiser Commercial|HMO $490.69 ↑ +132%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $505.58 ↑ +139%
Cigna Commercial|All Plans $517.66 ↑ +145%
BCBS - Regence Commercial|All Plans $520.68 ↑ +146%
Kaiser Commercial|PPO $539.79 ↑ +155%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|All Other Plans $614.84 ↑ +191%
United Commercial|Navigate $636.69 ↑ +201%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $670.21 ↑ +217%
United Commercial|Cascade Care $670.21 ↑ +217%
Aetna Commercial|AWH $754.62 ↑ +257%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $887.79 ↑ +320%

Visitor-reported prices

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Contrast x-ray gallbladder at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle $424.80 $203.11 – $856.43
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane $877.10 $195.46 – $655.99
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle $424.80 $203.11 – $829.10
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah $424.80 $203.68 – $856.43
Central Medical Center Seattle $616.00 $179.00 – $179.00
Providence Mount Carmel Hospital Colville $401.80 not published
Providence St Mary Medical Center Walla Walla $548.80 $162.81 – $361.60
Kadlec Regional Medical Center Richland $476.00 $152.03 – $712.48

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →