Knee arthroscopy/surgery 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

$5,385.09

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.

$10,559.00

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.

$18.30 with first choice vs $7,796.77 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
first choice commercial $18.30 ↓ -100%
aetna medicare advantage ppo $52.67 ↓ -99%
aetna medicare advantage $107.99 ↓ -98%
aetna medicare advantage hmo $117.34 ↓ -98%
confluence health medicare advantage $130.24 ↓ -98%
united healthcare commercial $663.38 ↓ -88%
humana medicare advantage $683.71 ↓ -87%
humana choicecare medicare advantage $683.71 ↓ -87%
united healthcare medicare advantage $683.71 ↓ -87%
kaiser foundation hp medicare $683.71 ↓ -87%
optum care network medicare advantage $683.71 ↓ -87%
signal health medicare advantage $696.85 ↓ -87%
multiplan medicare advantage $696.85 ↓ -87%
premera medicare advantage hmo/ppo $696.85 ↓ -87%
regence medicare advantage $715.75 ↓ -87%
regence uniform medical plan $1,167.62 ↓ -78%
premera commercial $1,381.77 ↓ -74%
regence commercial $1,549.61 ↓ -71%
coventry - first health commercial $1,557.10 ↓ -71%
cigna commercial $2,190.44 ↓ -59%
kaiser health plan commercial $2,650.40 ↓ -51%
aetna commercial $6,652.17 ↑ +24%
cigna local plus $7,796.77 ↑ +45%

Visitor-reported prices

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Knee arthroscopy/surgery at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle not published $3,788.94 – $13,331.38
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle not published $3,788.94 – $12,838.64
Central Medical Center Seattle not published not published
Providence St Luke's Rehabilitation Medical Center Spokane not published $3,646.14 – $4,010.75
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane not published $3,646.14 – $9,279.41
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah not published $3,799.57 – $13,331.38
Providence Centralia Hospital Centralia not published $3,788.94 – $16,014.08
Swedish Edmonds Hospital Edmonds not published $2,443.00 – $13,249.26

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →