4-bar link above knee w/swng at Virginia Mason Medical Center

1100 9th Ave., Seattle, WA · Vmfh · · NPI 1801851258

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Jan 1, 2026 · Ingested Sep 17, 2026

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.

Full explanation →

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.

Full explanation →

The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.

$1,391.80 with multiplan vs $7,053.18 with cigna — same scan, same building. Share

Negotiated rates by payer
?

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
multiplan medicare advantage $1,391.80
regence medicare advantage $1,690.05
regence uniform medical plan $1,941.69
regence commercial $1,941.69
kaiser foundation hp medicare $1,988.29
united healthcare medicare advantage $1,988.29
humana medicare advantage $1,988.29
optum care network medicare advantage $1,988.29
premera medicare advantage hmo/ppo $1,988.29
aetna medicare advantage ppo $2,047.94
aetna medicare advantage hmo $2,087.70
united healthcare commercial $2,385.95
premera commercial $5,164.90
kaiser health plan commercial $5,605.56
cigna commercial $6,214.80
cigna local plus $7,053.18

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

4-bar link above knee w/swng at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle not published $2,028.06 – $6,161.25
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle not published $2,028.06 – $4,959.69
Providence St Luke's Rehabilitation Medical Center Spokane not published $2,028.06 – $2,230.87
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane not published $2,028.06 – $5,161.41
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah not published $2,028.06 – $4,502.29
Providence Centralia Hospital Centralia not published $2,028.06 – $3,835.49
Swedish Edmonds Hospital Edmonds not published $2,028.06 – $6,612.92
Kadlec Regional Medical Center Richland not published $2,028.06 – $3,751.91

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →