Insertion catheter pleural indwelling tunneled with cuff 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

$2,364.33

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.

$7,533.94

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.

$3,927.98 with Kaiser vs $17,599.91 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
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $3,927.98 ↑ +66%
SoundPath Medicare|All Plans $3,927.98 ↑ +66%
Optum Medicare|All Plans $3,967.26 ↑ +68%
BCBS - Premera Medicare|All Plans $4,045.82 ↑ +71%
BCBS - Regence Medicare|All Plans $4,045.82 ↑ +71%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $4,045.82 ↑ +71%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $4,202.94 ↑ +78%
Molina Medicare|All Plans $4,242.22 ↑ +79%
United Medicare|All Plans $4,242.22 ↑ +79%
Amerigroup Medicare|All Plans $4,281.50 ↑ +81%
Seattle Medical Group Medicare|All Plans $4,517.18 ↑ +91%
CHPW Medicare|All Plans $4,517.18 ↑ +91%
Aetna Commercial|Rental $5,424.44 ↑ +129%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $5,650.46 ↑ +139%
Sound Family Medicine Commercial|All Plans $7,463.16 ↑ +216%
Molina Commercial|Marketplace Exchange $7,541.72 ↑ +219%
Coordinated Care Commercial|Ambetter Exchange $7,777.40 ↑ +229%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|LifeWise Primary Exchange $8,008.66 ↑ +239%
Uniform Medical Plan Commercial|All Plans $8,550.38 ↑ +262%
Kaiser Commercial|HMO $9,637.24 ↑ +308%
BCBS - Regence Commercial|All Plans $9,804.30 ↑ +315%
Kaiser Commercial|PPO $10,601.70 ↑ +348%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|All Other Plans $11,577.28 ↑ +390%
First Choice Commercial|All Plans $11,698.07 ↑ +395%
United Commercial|Navigate $12,621.96 ↑ +434%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $13,286.46 ↑ +462%
United Commercial|Cascade Care $13,286.46 ↑ +462%
Aetna Commercial|AWH $14,959.93 ↑ +533%
Cigna Commercial|All Plans $16,415.00 ↑ +594%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $17,599.91 ↑ +644%

Visitor-reported prices

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Insertion catheter pleural indwelling tunneled with cuff at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Providence St Joseph Hospital Chewelah $5,299.70 not published
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle $10,193.76 $4,146.07 – $15,142.49
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane $7,140.70 $3,989.80 – $10,154.04
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle $10,193.76 $4,146.07 – $14,582.80
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah $10,193.76 $4,157.70 – $15,142.49
Central Medical Center Seattle $7,920.00 not published
Providence Centralia Hospital Centralia $8,398.00 $4,146.07 – $18,189.64
Providence Mount Carmel Hospital Colville $6,198.50 not published

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →