Exchange biliary drg cath 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

$4,596.63

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.

$9,013.00

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.

$20.63 with first choice vs $7,210.40 with coventry - first health — 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
first choice commercial $20.63 ↓ -100%
aetna medicare advantage $20.81 ↓ -100%
aetna medicare advantage ppo $52.33 ↓ -99%
aetna medicare advantage hmo $76.35 ↓ -98%
united healthcare commercial $132.05 ↓ -97%
humana medicare advantage $134.85 ↓ -97%
optum care network medicare advantage $134.85 ↓ -97%
kaiser foundation hp medicare $134.85 ↓ -97%
united healthcare medicare advantage $134.85 ↓ -97%
humana choicecare medicare advantage $134.85 ↓ -97%
signal health medicare advantage $136.86 ↓ -97%
multiplan medicare advantage $136.86 ↓ -97%
premera medicare advantage hmo/ppo $136.86 ↓ -97%
regence medicare advantage $142.48 ↓ -97%
confluence health medicare advantage $142.63 ↓ -97%
regence uniform medical plan $239.53 ↓ -95%
premera commercial $283.46 ↓ -94%
cigna commercial $436.02 ↓ -91%
kaiser health plan commercial $644.07 ↓ -86%
regence commercial $1,598.58 ↓ -65%
aetna commercial $5,678.19 ↑ +24%
cigna local plus $6,655.20 ↑ +45%
coventry - first health commercial $7,210.40 ↑ +57%

Visitor-reported prices

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Exchange biliary drg cath at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle $10,518.72 $4,146.07 – $15,142.49
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle $10,518.72 $4,146.07 – $14,582.80
Central Medical Center Seattle not published not published
Providence St Joseph Hospital Chewelah $6,818.00 not published
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane $3,220.00 $3,989.80 – $10,154.04
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah $10,518.72 $4,157.70 – $15,142.49
Providence Centralia Hospital Centralia $6,927.96 $4,146.07 – $18,189.64
Providence Mount Carmel Hospital Colville $8,197.00 not published

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →