Culture body fluid 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

$61.71

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.

$121.00

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.

$6.03 with multiplan vs $96.80 with coventry - first health — 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 $6.03 ↓ -90%
regence medicare advantage $7.33 ↓ -88%
humana medicare advantage $8.62 ↓ -86%
united healthcare medicare advantage $8.62 ↓ -86%
kaiser foundation hp medicare $8.62 ↓ -86%
optum care network medicare advantage $8.62 ↓ -86%
premera medicare advantage hmo/ppo $8.62 ↓ -86%
regence commercial $8.62 ↓ -86%
regence uniform medical plan $8.62 ↓ -86%
aetna medicare advantage ppo $8.88 ↓ -86%
aetna medicare advantage hmo $9.05 ↓ -85%
united healthcare commercial $10.34 ↓ -83%
kaiser health plan commercial $13.79 ↓ -78%
premera commercial $15.09 ↓ -76%
cigna commercial $26.94 ↓ -56%
cigna local plus $30.58 ↓ -50%
aetna commercial $38.88 ↓ -37%
first choice commercial $77.50 ↑ +26%
coventry - first health commercial $96.80 ↑ +57%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Culture body fluid at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle $54.24 $7.76 – $40.51
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle $54.24 $7.76 – $39.22
Central Medical Center Seattle $111.20 $7.00 – $7.00
Providence St Luke's Rehabilitation Medical Center Spokane $267.12 $8.62 – $9.48
Providence St Joseph Hospital Chewelah $127.40 not published
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane $379.40 $8.62 – $31.03
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah $54.24 $7.76 – $40.51
Providence Centralia Hospital Centralia $278.20 $8.62 – $53.70

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →