Placement bile duct support 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

not published by hospital

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.

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What you pay up front if you don't use insurance.

not published by hospital

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.

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The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.

$5.78 with confluence health vs $18,711.00 with aetna — 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.

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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
confluence health medicare advantage $5.78
aetna medicare advantage ppo $14.99
aetna medicare advantage $21.78
first choice commercial $33.17
aetna medicare advantage hmo $110.75
united healthcare commercial $1,152.45
humana medicare advantage $1,167.03
humana choicecare medicare advantage $1,167.03
united healthcare medicare advantage $1,167.03
kaiser foundation hp medicare $1,167.03
optum care network medicare advantage $1,167.03
signal health medicare advantage $1,203.17
multiplan medicare advantage $1,203.17
premera medicare advantage hmo/ppo $1,203.17
regence medicare advantage $1,243.43
regence uniform medical plan $2,088.84
premera commercial $2,471.93
coventry - first health commercial $2,717.11
regence commercial $2,772.20
cigna commercial $3,805.30
kaiser health plan commercial $5,061.83
cigna local plus $9,117.06
aetna commercial $18,711.00

Visitor-reported prices

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Placement bile duct support at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle $4,943.52 $7,277.00 – $7,277.00
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle $4,943.52 $7,277.00 – $7,277.00
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah $4,943.52 $7,277.00 – $17,257.00
Providence Regional Medical Center Everett - Colby Campus Everett $4,901.52 $7,246.00 – $13,908.00
MultiCare Auburn Medical Center Auburn $2,941.60 $2,500.00 – $2,500.00
MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital Puyallup $2,941.60 $2,500.00 – $2,500.00
MultiCare Capital Medical Center Olympia $2,941.60 $2,500.00 – $2,500.00
MultiCare Covington Medical Center Covington $2,941.60 $2,500.00 – $2,500.00

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →