Dale Medical Center
126 Hospital Ave, Ozark, AL 36360 · 36 Priced Procedures · 78% Patient Recommendation
Typical commercial prices here are 17% below the fair benchmark (0.83×) after accounting for local nurse/doctor wages and patient complexity.
Balances commercial hospital prices against CMS clinical safety, infection control, and patient experience.
Uniform Value Leader · Low-Cost Across Departments
Dale Medical Center maintains low, disciplined commercial pricing across both routine shoppable procedures (0.8× Medicare, p50 0.81× Fair BaseRate) and emergency/ancillary services (1.0× Medicare, p75 0.89× Fair BaseRate). Both insured and self-pay patients benefit from below-benchmark rates across departments.
Where They're Good (Patient & Payer Edge)
- Elective shoppable care is priced 17% below peer Fair BaseRate (0.83×)
- Self-pay cash beats commercial insurance on 45% of shoppable procedures (99/100 Cash Honesty)
- CMS clinical safety score (70/100 safety score) with 78% patient recommendation
- Binding Good Faith Estimate rights under 45 CFR § 149.610 protect self-pay patients before scheduling
Where You Can Get Burned (Markup Traps)
- Even at low-cost facilities (0.83× Fair BaseRate), out-of-network or unnegotiated chargemaster bills can exceed commercial medians — confirm in-network status or request a self-pay cash quote up front.
- Captive ER (1.2×) & laboratory (1.1×) services average 1.25× higher multiples than routine shoppable care (0.8×)
- Specialty infusion drugs (J-codes) average 1.1× Medicare — verify per-unit billing on itemized statements
- Consolidated metro market (HHI 10,000) limits in-network hospital competition (Highly Concentrated Monopoly (>2,500))
Pre-scheduled outpatient procedures where patients can comparison-shop.
Emergency, inpatient DRG, lab, and specialty drug lines billed after admission.
Detects median-gaming when upper-quartile codes spike above the p50 median.
Procedure Prices at Dale Medical Center
High-impact clinical procedures (MRIs, surgeries, inpatient stays, visits) are prioritized first. Use the category pills or search bar to filter all 36 published procedures.
| Procedure & Billing Code | This Hospital | vs. Fair |
|---|---|---|
| Blood transfusion CPT Code: 36430 | $373 | 0.7× |
| Rabies immune globulin HCPCS Code: 90375 | $274 | 0.9× |
| Hepatitis B immune globulin HCPCS Code: 90371 | $135 | 0.9× |
| Diagnostic mammogram (both breasts) CPT Code: 77066 | $95 | 0.6× |
| Pneumococcal vaccine HCPCS Code: 90732 | $295 | 2.1× |
| Typhoid vaccine HCPCS Code: 90675 | $313 | 0.9× |
| Tdap vaccine (tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis) HCPCS Code: 90715 | $120 | 2.1× |
| Drug screening test HCPCS Code: G0480 | $112 | 1.0× |
| Hepatitis B vaccine HCPCS Code: 90744 | $71 | 1.9× |
| Speech therapy (language evaluation) CPT Code: 92507 | $71 | 0.8× |
| X-ray, shoulder CPT Code: 73030 | $74 | 0.8× |
| X-ray, foot CPT Code: 73630 | $74 | 0.8× |
| X-ray, hand CPT Code: 73130 | $74 | 0.8× |
| X-ray, hip CPT Code: 73502 | $74 | 0.8× |
| X-ray, ankle CPT Code: 73610 | $74 | 0.8× |
| Screening mammogram (both breasts) CPT Code: 77067 | $78 | 0.6× |
| Flu vaccine (high dose) HCPCS Code: 90656 | $49 | 2.0× |
| Breathing treatment (nebulizer) CPT Code: 94640 | $74 | 0.4× |
| Blood test, creatinine (kidney) CPT Code: 82565 | $5 | 1.0× |
| Blood test, glucose (blood sugar) CPT Code: 82947 | $4 | 1.0× |
| Blood test, average blood sugar (A1c) CPT Code: 83036 | $10 | 1.0× |
| Blood test, PSA (prostate screen) CPT Code: 84153 | $18 | 0.9× |
| Blood test, vitamin D CPT Code: 82306 | $29 | 0.9× |
| Prosthetic fitting and training CPT Code: 97761 | $37 | 0.8× |
| Blood test, liver function panel CPT Code: 80076 | $8 | 0.9× |
Audit a Bill or Quote at Dale Medical Center (Zero PHI Required)
Above Standard 400% FPL Financial-Assistance Ceiling
At 274% FPL, you exceed the standard 400% FPL tier, though medical-hardship caps (when bills exceed 10% of annual income) may still apply.
Self-Pay Cash Rate ($612) Beats Your Bill
Dale Medical Center's published 45 CFR § 180 self-pay cash rate is $612 (vs. $373 commercial insurer median). Ask billing to reclassify the visit to prompt-pay self-pay if it beats your deductible.
Negotiate Toward $498 Fair BaseRate ($451 Medicare)
Your bill ($874) is $376 above the denoised Fair BaseRate ($498) and 1.9× the $451 Medicare rate.
Financial Assistance Policy (FAP) & Amounts Generally Billed (AGB)
Public IRS & CMS ownership records classify Dale Medical Center as a non-501(c)(3) facility. Federal 26 U.S.C. § 501(r) statutory charity-care caps apply specifically to tax-exempt nonprofit hospitals, though state hospital fair-pricing statutes and prompt-pay self-pay discounts may still apply.
Clinical Quality, Patient Experience & Infection Benchmarks
Healthcare-Associated Infections (CDC NHSN / CMS HAI)
1.00 SIR = National Predicted Baseline (Lower Is Safer)CMS Price Transparency Administrative Enforcement Log
Factual public administrative actions published by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services regarding 45 CFR § 180 compliance at Dale Medical Center. Prior administrative notices do not necessarily reflect current compliance status.
- 2025-02-13·administrative_or_closure
Closure Notice
Recorded - 2025-01-08·cap_corrective_action
CAP Request
Recorded - 2024-12-19·cap_corrective_action
CAP Request
Recorded - 2024-09-18·warning_notice
Warning Notice
Recorded
Source: CMS Hospital Care Compare (69 completed HCAHPS patient surveys). Clinical quality metrics summarize historical facility-wide cohorts and are not medical advice for individual care decisions.
How to Pay Less Nearby: Freestanding Centers, Insurer Leverage & Outpatient Savings
2D regional comparison of commercial negotiated price index against CMS clinical quality composite for Dale Medical Center.
Verify the Raw Data: Official Hospital MRF, CMS Medicare.gov & Federal Filings
Safe-Harbor Data Corrections: Parsed directly from public 45 CFR § 180 hospital filings, CMS Care Compare, and CMS HCRIS cost reports. Hospital compliance officers may submit updated MRF URLs or rate tables for verification.