Fl exam g/colon tube w contrast 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

$338.51

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.

$1,022.05

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.

$273.98 with Kaiser vs $1,205.51 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
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $273.98 ↓ -19%
SoundPath Medicare|All Plans $273.98 ↓ -19%
Optum Medicare|All Plans $276.72 ↓ -18%
BCBS - Premera Medicare|All Plans $282.20 ↓ -17%
BCBS - Regence Medicare|All Plans $282.20 ↓ -17%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $282.20 ↓ -17%
Seattle Medical Group Medicare|All Plans $292.66 ↓ -14%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $293.16 ↓ -13%
United Medicare|All Plans $295.90 ↓ -13%
Molina Medicare|All Plans $295.90 ↓ -13%
Amerigroup Medicare|All Plans $298.64 ↓ -12%
CHPW Medicare|All Plans $315.08 ↓ -7%
Molina Commercial|Marketplace Exchange $526.04 ↑ +55%
Coordinated Care Commercial|Ambetter Exchange $542.48 ↑ +60%
Sound Family Medicine Commercial|All Plans $547.96 ↑ +62%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|LifeWise Primary Exchange $567.22 ↑ +68%
Uniform Medical Plan Commercial|All Plans $605.60 ↑ +79%
Kaiser Commercial|HMO $635.38 ↑ +88%
BCBS - Regence Commercial|All Plans $694.41 ↑ +105%
Kaiser Commercial|PPO $698.97 ↑ +106%
Cigna Commercial|All Plans $705.22 ↑ +108%
Aetna Commercial|Rental $735.88 ↑ +117%
First Choice Commercial|All Plans $736.65 ↑ +118%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $766.54 ↑ +126%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|All Other Plans $819.98 ↑ +142%
United Commercial|Navigate $864.53 ↑ +155%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $910.04 ↑ +169%
United Commercial|Cascade Care $910.04 ↑ +169%
Aetna Commercial|AWH $1,024.69 ↑ +203%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $1,205.51 ↑ +256%

Visitor-reported prices

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Fl exam g/colon tube w contrast at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
MultiCare Mary Bridge Children's Hospital Tacoma $416.00 $85.30 – $1,836.63
MultiCare Allenmore Hospital Tacoma $416.00 $85.73 – $1,145.33
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle $782.40 $276.30 – $1,095.29
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane $551.60 $265.88 – $838.94
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle $782.40 $276.30 – $1,060.33
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah $782.40 $277.07 – $1,095.29
Providence Mount Carmel Hospital Colville $220.50 not published
Providence St Mary Medical Center Walla Walla $630.00 $217.13 – $491.89

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →