Abdominal CT scan (with and without contrast) at Ascension SE Wisconsin Hospital - St. Joseph Campus

5000 W. Chambers St, Milwaukee, WI · Ascension · · NPI 1427007384

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

$862.84

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.

$1,628.00

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.

$172.86 with VETERANS ADMINISTRATION vs $1,269.84 with CIGNA — 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
VETERANS ADMINISTRATION 1208_VETERAN ADMINISTRATION OUTPATIENT 20250101 $172.86 ↓ -80%
VETERANS ADMINISTRATION 1323_VETERAN ADMINISTRATION INPATIENT 20251001 $172.86 ↓ -80%
MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 1205_MEDICARE REPLACEMENT OUTPATIENT 20250101 $172.86 ↓ -80%
MEDICARE REPLACEMENT 1321_MEDICARE REPLACEMENT INPATIENT 20251001 $172.86 ↓ -80%
WPS 1272_WISCONSIN PHYSICIAN SERVICES PPO 20250701 $240.02 ↓ -72%
SMART HEALTH 1317_SMARTHEALTH INPATIENT 20251001 $242.00 ↓ -72%
SMART HEALTH 1206_SMARTHEALTH OUTPATIENT 20250101 $242.00 ↓ -72%
UNITED HEALTH CARE 1282_UNITED HEALTH CARE 20250701 $401.74 ↓ -53%
TRILOGY 1271_TRILOGY 20250701 $724.00 ↓ -16%
CIGNA 1273_CIGNA 20250701 $1,269.84 ↑ +47%

Visitor-reported prices

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Abdominal CT scan (with and without contrast) at other Wisconsin hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Ascension Columbia St. Mary's Hospital - Milwaukee Campus (Columbia St. Mary's Hospital Milwaukee, Inc.) Milwaukee $1,459.09 $109.28 – $401.74
Ascension St. Francis Hospital, Inc. Milwaukee $862.84 $172.86 – $724.00
Ascension Columbia St. Mary's Hospital - Ozaukee Campus (Columbia St. Mary's Hospital Milwaukee, Inc.) Mequon $1,797.76 $109.28 – $401.74
UnityPoint Health - Meriter Hospital Madison $5,468.16 $61.41 – $2,269.28
SSM Health St. Clare Hospital - Baraboo Baraboo $1,831.50 $127.78 – $2,066.57
SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital - Janesville Janesville $2,131.25 $132.50 – $1,483.06
SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital - Madison Madison $1,885.40 $127.78 – $1,556.01
SSM Health Monroe Hospital Monroe $1,882.10 $170.37 – $509.67

All Wisconsin hospitals for this procedure →