Bx/exc lymph node/open/superfic 38500 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

$5,963.43

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.

$11,693.00

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.

$5.67 with aetna vs $8,634.11 with cigna — 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
aetna medicare advantage hmo $5.67 ↓ -100%
first choice commercial $10.05 ↓ -100%
confluence health medicare advantage $121.10 ↓ -98%
aetna medicare advantage $193.25 ↓ -97%
united healthcare commercial $266.79 ↓ -96%
humana medicare advantage $272.90 ↓ -95%
humana choicecare medicare advantage $272.90 ↓ -95%
united healthcare medicare advantage $272.90 ↓ -95%
kaiser foundation hp medicare $272.90 ↓ -95%
optum care network medicare advantage $272.90 ↓ -95%
aetna medicare advantage ppo $274.83 ↓ -95%
multiplan medicare advantage $279.38 ↓ -95%
signal health medicare advantage $279.38 ↓ -95%
premera medicare advantage hmo/ppo $279.38 ↓ -95%
regence medicare advantage $287.85 ↓ -95%
regence uniform medical plan $478.43 ↓ -92%
premera commercial $566.18 ↓ -91%
coventry - first health commercial $811.86 ↓ -86%
regence commercial $841.62 ↓ -86%
cigna commercial $880.93 ↓ -85%
kaiser health plan commercial $1,154.16 ↓ -81%
aetna commercial $7,366.59 ↑ +24%
cigna local plus $8,634.11 ↑ +45%

Visitor-reported prices

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Bx/exc lymph node/open/superfic 38500 at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle $8,856.48 $4,534.03 – $14,753.91
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle $8,856.48 $4,534.03 – $14,208.59
Central Medical Center Seattle not published not published
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah $8,856.48 $4,546.75 – $14,753.91
MultiCare Valley Hospital Spokane Valley $2,590.40 $1,960.71 – $15,298.21
MultiCare Yakima Memorial Hospital Yakima $447.60 $4,671.06 – $11,863.51
MultiCare Auburn Medical Center Auburn $3,810.00 $2,005.54 – $18,794.97
MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital Puyallup $3,810.00 $2,051.91 – $18,794.97

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →