Repair of knee ligament 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

$9,135.12

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.

$17,912.00

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.

$16.15 with aetna vs $13,226.22 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
aetna medicare advantage $16.15 ↓ -100%
first choice commercial $20.00 ↓ -100%
aetna medicare advantage ppo $47.55 ↓ -99%
confluence health medicare advantage $56.57 ↓ -99%
aetna medicare advantage hmo $370.00 ↓ -96%
united healthcare commercial $724.55 ↓ -92%
humana medicare advantage $745.89 ↓ -92%
humana choicecare medicare advantage $745.89 ↓ -92%
united healthcare medicare advantage $745.89 ↓ -92%
kaiser foundation hp medicare $745.89 ↓ -92%
optum care network medicare advantage $745.89 ↓ -92%
signal health medicare advantage $761.26 ↓ -92%
multiplan medicare advantage $761.26 ↓ -92%
premera medicare advantage hmo/ppo $761.26 ↓ -92%
regence medicare advantage $781.75 ↓ -91%
regence uniform medical plan $1,275.82 ↓ -86%
premera commercial $1,509.80 ↓ -83%
regence commercial $1,693.20 ↓ -81%
coventry - first health commercial $1,699.26 ↓ -81%
cigna commercial $2,392.40 ↓ -74%
kaiser health plan commercial $2,921.59 ↓ -68%
aetna commercial $11,284.56 ↑ +24%
cigna local plus $13,226.22 ↑ +45%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Repair of knee ligament at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle not published $7,277.00 – $29,132.10
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle not published $7,277.00 – $28,055.35
Central Medical Center Seattle not published not published
Providence St Luke's Rehabilitation Medical Center Spokane not published $8,085.92 – $8,894.51
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane not published $8,085.92 – $20,578.67
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah not published $7,277.00 – $29,132.10
Providence Centralia Hospital Centralia not published $8,402.62 – $34,994.41
Swedish Edmonds Hospital Edmonds not published $2,836.00 – $28,952.64

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →