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State Price Transparency Index 255 Mapped Hospitals 142 Shoppable Procedures +13% vs. U.S. Median (above the U.S. average)

California Hospital Rates

Compare cash discount rates, commercial insurance prices, and fair price benchmarks across all 255 California hospitals.

Pillar 1 · The BaseRate™ CompositeHow 1.00× Fair BaseRate Works: Raw price averages unfairly penalize hospitals in high-wage cities or trauma centers treating sicker patients. We adjust for local CMS hospital wage levels and patient complexity first. A 1.00× score means right at the fair price average, 0.85× means 15% cheaper than fair market, and 1.30× means 30% above fair market.Above Fair Market · Negotiate
1.13×vs. U.S. Fair Price Average
Position vs. 1.00× Fair Price+13% Above Fair Price 1.00× (center of the bar) is the U.S. fair price average after accounting for local hospital wages and patient complexity. Left of center (<1.00×) is below fair price; right of center (>1.00×) is above fair price.

Across 255 California hospitals, typical commercial prices average +13% above the U.S. fair price (1.13×) after accounting for local wages.

Pillar 2 · VeriRate™ Data TrustHow VeriRate™ (0–100) Works: Hospitals are legally required to publish machine-readable price files, but some bury fake $0.01 numbers or omit cash discounts. VeriRate audits each file across 5 checks (hover any badge below to see what it tests).86/100 · Verified
86/100Hover Any Check Below to See How Prices Were Audited
File Completeness90Provenance (File Completeness): Checks whether the hospital published a complete, up-to-date machine-readable price file with valid CPT and MS-DRG billing codes instead of leaving blanks.
Price Logic88Coherence (Price Logic): Checks whether the hospital’s numbers make basic sense — e.g., self-pay cash price is lower than gross list price, with no fake $0.01 or $999,999 placeholder numbers.
Peer Alignment86Concordance (Peer Alignment): Checks whether reported prices sit in a realistic range compared to Medicare and nearby hospitals rather than wild 100× unit errors.
Clean Billing83Regularity (Clean Billing): Checks whether rates are structured consistently across procedures without erratic statistical spikes or hidden unbundled facility fees.
Real Cash Discount84Cash Honesty (Real Cash Discount): Checks whether the hospital offers a genuine self-pay cash discount that beats or matches commercial insurance rates instead of billing full sticker price.
Pillar 3 · California Market & Best ValueSummarizes statewide hospital price coverage across California, the average commercial markup over federal Medicare rates, and the #1 best-value hospital in the state.255 Hospitals · 142 Procedures
Hospitals Priced255 in CATotal hospitals in California with verified machine-readable price disclosures indexed in the Crystal.
Avg vs. Medicare1.5× MedicareAverage commercial insurance negotiated rate across California hospitals compared to what federal Medicare pays for the same procedure.
Best Value in CA0.49× FairLowest confounder-adjusted hospital in California: Patients' Hospital of Redding (Redding) at 0.49× fair market price.

Most affordable California hospital: Patients' Hospital of Redding (Redding) at 0.49× the fair price (51% below benchmark).

Statewide Hospital Pricing Fingerprint255 California Hospitals Analyzed

California Statewide Hospital Pricing Summary

Across 255 reporting hospitals and 142 shoppable procedures in California, typical commercial insurance rates sit at 1.13× the U.S. fair price average (1.5× federal Medicare rates). However, prices vary by 7.6× across the state — from 0.49× fair price at the most affordable hospitals up to 3.71× at high-markup facilities.

State Price Index: 1.13× U.S. Fair AverageAvg Commercial Rate: 1.5× Medicare
Advantage

Best Value in California (Lowest-Priced Hospitals & Patient Edge)

  • Best-value hospital in California: Patients' Hospital of Redding (Redding) prices care at 0.49× the fair price benchmark.
  • Additional low-cost leaders include Fairchild Medical Center (Yreka, 0.54× fair) and Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital at UCLA (0.61× fair).
  • Bottom-quartile California hospitals (Q25) charge 0.98× the fair price or less — comparing quotes before scheduling elective care saves 25%–45%.
  • Nonprofit 501(c)(3) hospitals across California must provide free or discounted charity care under federal 26 U.S.C. § 501(r) income rules.
Watchout

Where California Patients Get Burned (High-Markup Traps)

  • Highest-markup California facilities reach 5.0× Medicare (Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center in Pomona, Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego).
  • Prices for the exact same procedure swing 7.6× between the lowest-priced (0.49×) and highest-priced (3.71×) hospitals in California.
  • Emergency room, lab, and outpatient surgery facility fees carry significantly higher markups than pre-scheduled imaging or freestanding centers.
Most Affordable CA Hospitals (Bottom 25%)Best Value Tier
0.49× – 0.98× Fair

Led by Patients' Hospital of Redding (Redding) at 0.49× fair price.

Typical California Hospital (State Median)1.5× Medicare
1.11× Fair Price

Middle-of-the-pack commercial rate across all 255 California hospitals.

Highest-Markup CA Hospitals (Top 25%)7.6× State Spread
1.38× – 3.71× Fair

Highest-priced quarter of California hospitals where shopping around saves the most.

California County Price & Affordability Heatmap 47 of 58 Counties with MRF Hospital Data

California County-Level Hospital Price & Affordability Heatmap

Hospital price index, Medicare markup, and household affordability burden across 58 counties in California

<0.94× Affordable 0.94–1.06× Near Avg 1.06–1.20× Elevated >1.20× High-Markup
Los Angeles County57hosps
1.19× Fair
Income $88k
Orange County21hosps
1.38× Fair
Income $114k
San Diego County17hosps
1.21× Fair
Income $102k
San Bernardino County15hosps
1.30× Fair
Income $82k
Riverside County12hosps
1.12× Fair
Income $90k
Kern County9hosps
1.19× Fair
Income $68k
Alameda County9hosps
1.24× Fair
Income $126k
Fresno County7hosps
1.06× Fair
Income $71k
San Francisco County7hosps
1.12× Fair
Income $141k
Sacramento County7hosps
1.24× Fair
Income $89k
Santa Clara County6hosps
1.22× Fair
Income $160k
San Joaquin County5hosps
1.09× Fair
Income $89k
Contra Costa County5hosps
1.15× Fair
Income $126k
Sonoma County5hosps
1.57× Fair
Income $103k
Solano County4hosps
1.05× Fair
Income $100k
Shasta County4hosps
1.13× Fair
Income $72k
Ventura County4hosps
1.34× Fair
Income $107k
Mendocino County3hosps
0.78× Fair
Income $65k
Plumas County3hosps
0.90× Fair
Income $65k
Monterey County3hosps
0.95× Fair
Income $94k
San Mateo County3hosps
1.17× Fair
Income $156k
San Luis Obispo County3hosps
1.67× Fair
Income $93k
Butte County2hosps
0.91× Fair
Income $69k
Tulare County2hosps
1.07× Fair
Income $69k
Showing top 24 counties with hospital price filings of 58 total in California

All Hospitals in California (255)

Ranked by how their commercial prices compare to the fair BaseRate — best value first. Select any hospital to inspect its full procedure price list.

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Compare Prices by Procedure in California (142)

High-impact surgeries, scans, and hospital stays are listed first with the typical California price. Search any procedure below.

Browse California by Metro Area

Local hospital comparison pages for each California regional market.

Which Insurers Negotiate Prices in California

Across the 260 California hospitals that publish negotiated rates, here is how many hospitals each major insurance carrier has an in-network contract with.

Blue Cross Blue Shield 215 of 260 hospitals
Aetna 185 of 260 hospitals
UnitedHealthcare 184 of 260 hospitals
Cigna 171 of 260 hospitals
Kaiser Permanente 166 of 260 hospitals
Humana 112 of 260 hospitals

Also negotiating in California: Health Net (193) · Molina (81) · Sentara (28) · WellCare (20) · Bright Health (18) · Oscar Health (16).

Prices are sourced from each hospital's federally-required public price file, most recently published October 2026. The BaseRate is a modeled fair-price estimate — not a bill or quote. How we build these numbers →