CMS Price Transparency Data

MRI, brain (no contrast)

Facility: Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla

Billing Code: 70551 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price high confidence

A fair price for this

$315

about 1.3× the $244 Medicare rate · typically $291–$378

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$307

About the fair price

about $8 under the fair price · 1.3× Medicare

Medicare pays $244 Fair price $315 This hospital $307 Cash price $913 Hospital's list price $3,652

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other CA hospitals

Highest price of the 9 CA hospitals we have prices for — worth calling around.

Cheapest $59 Priciest $307

Black dot = this hospital, among the 9 CA hospitals with a price for this procedure. Full list below.

A fair price for a MRI, brain (no contrast) is about $315 (about 1.3× the $244 Medicare rate). Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla charges insurers about $307, or about $913 in cash — about the fair price. Located in La Jolla, CA.

What each insurance company pays

Which insurers have negotiated a price with this hospital for this procedure — and which haven’t.

6 of 6 major insurers have a published price at this hospital

✓ UnitedHealthcare✓ Blue Cross Blue Shield✓ Aetna✓ Cigna✓ Humana✓ Kaiser Permanente

Crossed out = this hospital hasn’t published a negotiated price for that insurer for this procedure. It doesn’t necessarily mean they aren’t accepted — ask your insurer.

Insurance company	Price range	vs. Medicare
UnitedHealthcaremajor	$119 - $694	49%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$292 - $694	120%
Aetnamajor	$152 - $738	62%
Cignamajor	$292 - $347	120%
Humanamajor	$307	126%
Kaiser Permanentemajor	$307 - $1,391	126%
Health Net	$292 - $767	120%
HealthPartners	$307 - $632	126%
+ 41 smaller / regional plans	$119 - $2,922

Government programs also on file: Medicare, Medicaid.

Excludes 4 rental-network / third-party entries (e.g. Multiplan, PHCS) — these are pricing networks, not insurers.

Self-Pay How to get the cash price

Tell the billing desk you want to be billed as self-pay — not through insurance — before your visit.
Ask for the cash / prompt-pay discount in writing, with the exact price (about 913), before you agree to anything.
Get it in writing that they won’t also bill your insurance, so the cash price is what you owe.
Check the CPT code on your bill matches exactly: 70551.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 70551.
Confirm the doctor or provider is in-network too — not just the hospital building.
Check your Explanation of Benefits against the hospital’s final itemized bill.

Estimate your out-of-pocket cost

A rough estimate of what you’d pay with insurance (deductible + coinsurance) versus paying the cash price yourself.

How you’d pay

Deductible left to meet ($)

Your coinsurance (%)

Enter your details and press estimate to compare.

Other Procedures at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla

Compare: MRI, brain (no contrast) at other CA hospitals

Insurance negotiated median for the same procedure, sorted lowest first.