Brain MRI (with contrast) at Ascension Columbia St. Mary's Hospital - Milwaukee Campus (Columbia St. Mary's Hospital Milwaukee, Inc.)

2301 N Lake Dr, Milwaukee, WI · Ascension · · NPI 1871656082

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Jan 1, 2026 · Ingested Sep 8, 2026

$2,613.96

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.

$4,932.00

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.

$139.93 with NETWORK HEALTH PLAN vs $828.27 with CCHP MARKETPLACE — 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
NETWORK HEALTH PLAN 1136_NETWORK HEALTH PLAN 20221001 $139.93 ↓ -95%
UHC NON OPTIONS PPO 1130_UNITED HEALTH CARE NONOPTIONS 20221001 $238.18 ↓ -91%
HUMANA PPO 1133_HUMANA PPO 20221001 $238.18 ↓ -91%
HUMANA HMO POS 1127_HUMANA 20221001 $238.18 ↓ -91%
HUMANA PREFERRED 1134_HUMANA PREFERRED 20221001 $238.18 ↓ -91%
ALLIANCE 1066_ALLIANCE 20220101 $296.07 ↓ -89%
VETERANS ADMINISTRATION 1114_VETERANS ADMINISTRATION INPATIENT 20221001 $347.66 ↓ -87%
VETERANS ADMINISTRATION 1064_VETERANS ADMINISTRATION OUTPATIENT 20220101 $347.66 ↓ -87%
MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 1109_MEDICARE REPLACEMENT OUTPATIENT 20220701 $347.66 ↓ -87%
MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 1116_MEDICARE REPLACEMENT INPATIENT 20221001 $347.66 ↓ -87%
MOLINA HEALTH MARKETPLACE 1060_MOLINA MARKETPLACE OUTPATIENT 20220101 $764.85 ↓ -71%
MOLINA HEALTH MARKETPLACE 1111_MOLINA MARKETPLACE INPATIENT 20221001 $764.85 ↓ -71%
CCHP MARKETPLACE 1124_CCHP MARKETPLACE 20221001 $828.27 ↓ -68%

Visitor-reported prices

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Brain MRI (with contrast) at other Wisconsin hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Ascension St. Francis Hospital, Inc. Milwaukee $1,391.25 $304.91 – $836.00
Ascension SE Wisconsin Hospital - St. Joseph Campus Milwaukee $1,391.25 $304.91 – $836.00
Ascension Columbia St. Mary's Hospital - Ozaukee Campus (Columbia St. Mary's Hospital Milwaukee, Inc.) Mequon $2,613.96 $139.93 – $828.27
UnityPoint Health - Meriter Hospital Madison $2,647.06 $78.55 – $1,910.18
SSM Health St. Clare Hospital - Baraboo Baraboo $2,415.05 $254.15 – $2,477.87
SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital - Janesville Janesville $2,251.70 $263.55 – $1,778.23
SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital - Madison Madison $2,563.00 $254.15 – $1,865.70
SSM Health Monroe Hospital Monroe $2,354.00 $338.87 – $610.18

All Wisconsin hospitals for this procedure →