Gastroesophageal reflux test 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

$812.18

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.

$2,452.25

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.

$601.40 with Kaiser vs $2,646.16 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 $601.40 ↓ -26%
SoundPath Medicare|All Plans $601.40 ↓ -26%
Seattle Medical Group Medicare|All Plans $605.88 ↓ -25%
Optum Medicare|All Plans $607.41 ↓ -25%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $619.44 ↓ -24%
BCBS - Regence Medicare|All Plans $619.44 ↓ -24%
BCBS - Premera Medicare|All Plans $619.44 ↓ -24%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $643.50 ↓ -21%
United Medicare|All Plans $649.51 ↓ -20%
Molina Medicare|All Plans $649.51 ↓ -20%
Amerigroup Medicare|All Plans $655.53 ↓ -19%
CHPW Medicare|All Plans $691.61 ↓ -15%
First Choice Commercial|All Plans $988.15 ↑ +22%
Molina Commercial|Marketplace Exchange $1,154.69 ↑ +42%
Coordinated Care Commercial|Ambetter Exchange $1,190.77 ↑ +47%
Sound Family Medicine Commercial|All Plans $1,202.80 ↑ +48%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|LifeWise Primary Exchange $1,240.72 ↑ +53%
Kaiser Commercial|HMO $1,315.36 ↑ +62%
Uniform Medical Plan Commercial|All Plans $1,324.65 ↑ +63%
Kaiser Commercial|PPO $1,447.00 ↑ +78%
BCBS - Regence Commercial|All Plans $1,518.92 ↑ +87%
Aetna Commercial|Rental $1,765.62 ↑ +117%
BCBS - Premera Commercial|All Other Plans $1,793.58 ↑ +121%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $1,839.19 ↑ +126%
United Commercial|Navigate $1,897.73 ↑ +134%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $1,997.64 ↑ +146%
United Commercial|Cascade Care $1,997.64 ↑ +146%
Aetna Commercial|AWH $2,249.24 ↑ +177%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $2,646.16 ↑ +226%

Visitor-reported prices

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Gastroesophageal reflux test at other Washington hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
MultiCare Mary Bridge Children's Hospital Tacoma not published $439.59 – $3,802.18
MultiCare Allenmore Hospital Tacoma not published $426.79 – $2,238.28
Providence St Joseph Hospital Chewelah $373.80 not published
Swedish Medical Center - First Hill Campus Seattle $1,466.88 $432.11 – $2,282.37
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children's Hospital Spokane $1,538.60 $415.83 – $1,748.20
Swedish Medical Center Cherry Hill Seattle $1,466.88 $432.11 – $2,209.53
Swedish Issaquah Issaquah $1,466.88 $433.33 – $2,282.37
Central Medical Center Seattle $2,460.80 not published

All Washington hospitals for this procedure →