Electrolyte panel 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

$26.01

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.

$51.00

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.

$4.91 with multiplan vs $40.80 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 $4.91 ↓ -81%
regence medicare advantage $5.96 ↓ -77%
humana medicare advantage $7.01 ↓ -73%
united healthcare medicare advantage $7.01 ↓ -73%
kaiser foundation hp medicare $7.01 ↓ -73%
optum care network medicare advantage $7.01 ↓ -73%
premera medicare advantage hmo/ppo $7.01 ↓ -73%
regence commercial $7.01 ↓ -73%
regence uniform medical plan $7.01 ↓ -73%
aetna medicare advantage ppo $7.22 ↓ -72%
aetna medicare advantage hmo $7.36 ↓ -72%
united healthcare commercial $8.41 ↓ -68%
kaiser health plan commercial $11.22 ↓ -57%
premera commercial $12.27 ↓ -53%
cigna commercial $21.91 ↓ -16%
cigna local plus $24.87 ↓ -4%
aetna commercial $31.62 ↑ +22%
first choice commercial $32.67 ↑ +26%
coventry - first health commercial $40.80 ↑ +57%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Electrolyte panel at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle $41.76 $6.31 – $32.95
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle $41.76 $6.31 – $31.90
Central Medical Center Seattle $120.00 $6.00 – $6.00
Providence St Luke's Rehabilitation Medical Center Spokane $78.12 $7.01 – $7.71
Providence St Joseph Hospital Chewelah $42.00 not published
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane $51.80 $7.01 – $25.24
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah $41.76 $6.31 – $32.95
Providence Mount Carmel Hospital Colville $100.80 not published

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →