Biliary endoscopy thru skin at St. Joseph Medical Center

1717 South J Street, Tacoma, WA · Vmfh · · NPI 1952309098

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Feb 28, 2026 · Ingested Sep 17, 2026

$2,725.45

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.

$8,229.06

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.

$3,999.98 with SoundPath vs $17,599.91 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.

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
SoundPath Medicare|All Plans $3,999.98 ↑ +47%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $3,999.98 ↑ +47%
Optum Medicare|All Plans $4,039.98 ↑ +48%
BCBS - Regence Medicare|All Plans $4,119.98 ↑ +51%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $4,119.98 ↑ +51%
BCBS - Premera Medicare|All Plans $4,119.98 ↑ +51%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $4,279.98 ↑ +57%
Molina Medicare|All Plans $4,319.98 ↑ +59%
United Medicare|All Plans $4,319.98 ↑ +59%
Amerigroup Medicare|All Plans $4,359.98 ↑ +60%
Seattle Medical Group Medicare|All Plans $4,439.08 ↑ +63%
CHPW Medicare|All Plans $4,599.98 ↑ +69%
Aetna Commercial|Rental $5,924.93 ↑ +117%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $6,171.80 ↑ +126%
Cigna Commercial|All Plans $6,630.00 ↑ +143%
Molina Commercial|Marketplace Exchange $7,679.96 ↑ +182%
Coordinated Care Commercial|Ambetter Exchange $7,919.96 ↑ +191%
Sound Family Medicine Commercial|All Plans $7,999.96 ↑ +194%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|LifeWise Primary Exchange $8,008.66 ↑ +194%
Uniform Medical Plan Commercial|All Plans $8,550.38 ↑ +214%
Kaiser Commercial|HMO $9,637.24 ↑ +254%
BCBS - Regence Commercial|All Plans $9,804.30 ↑ +260%
Kaiser Commercial|PPO $10,601.70 ↑ +289%
First Choice Commercial|All Plans $11,080.19 ↑ +307%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|All Other Plans $11,577.28 ↑ +325%
United Commercial|Navigate $12,621.96 ↑ +363%
United Commercial|Cascade Care $13,286.46 ↑ +387%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $13,286.46 ↑ +387%
Aetna Commercial|AWH $14,959.93 ↑ +449%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $17,599.91 ↑ +546%

Visitor-reported prices

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Biliary endoscopy thru skin at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
MultiCare Mary Bridge Children's Hospital Tacoma $3,742.80 $3,035.95 – $27,857.28
MultiCare Allenmore Hospital Tacoma $3,742.80 $3,051.15 – $31,075.82
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle $8,326.08 $7,277.00 – $22,774.72
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane $2,720.90 $6,949.39 – $18,359.80
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle $8,326.08 $7,277.00 – $17,542.08
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah $8,326.08 $7,277.00 – $16,689.18
Providence Holy Family Hospital Spokane $3,294.20 $5,081.00 – $18,936.92
Providence Regional Medical Center Everett - Colby Campus Everett $5,591.04 $7,270.79 – $17,103.98

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →