Kidney img w/bldflw sgl without rx 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

$1,209.72

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.

$2,372.00

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.

$6.80 with first choice vs $1,751.48 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
first choice commercial $6.80 ↓ -99%
aetna medicare advantage hmo $38.99 ↓ -97%
aetna medicare advantage ppo $90.94 ↓ -92%
confluence health medicare advantage $114.90 ↓ -91%
humana medicare advantage $244.93 ↓ -80%
humana choicecare medicare advantage $244.93 ↓ -80%
united healthcare medicare advantage $244.93 ↓ -80%
kaiser foundation hp medicare $244.93 ↓ -80%
optum care network medicare advantage $244.93 ↓ -80%
united healthcare commercial $249.10 ↓ -79%
multiplan medicare advantage $255.31 ↓ -79%
signal health medicare advantage $255.31 ↓ -79%
premera medicare advantage hmo/ppo $255.31 ↓ -79%
regence medicare advantage $268.77 ↓ -78%
regence uniform medical plan $409.01 ↓ -66%
premera commercial $484.03 ↓ -60%
regence commercial $542.82 ↓ -55%
coventry - first health commercial $634.55 ↓ -48%
kaiser health plan commercial $780.18 ↓ -36%
cigna commercial $822.53 ↓ -32%
aetna medicare advantage $1,016.15 ↓ -16%
aetna commercial $1,494.36 ↑ +24%
cigna local plus $1,751.48 ↑ +45%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Kidney img w/bldflw sgl without rx at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle $1,547.04 $628.75 – $2,218.31
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle $1,547.04 $628.75 – $2,147.51
Central Medical Center Seattle $1,848.00 $539.00 – $539.00
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane $2,611.70 $605.06 – $1,699.13
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah $1,547.04 $630.52 – $2,218.31
Providence Centralia Hospital Centralia $1,427.40 $628.75 – $2,940.44
Providence Mount Carmel Hospital Colville $878.50 not published
Providence St Mary Medical Center Walla Walla $1,232.00 $478.94 – $1,119.35

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →