Eastern Plumas Hospital - Portola Campus
500 First Avenue, Portola, CA 96122 · 73 Priced Procedures
Typical commercial prices here match the fair market benchmark (1.00×) after accounting for local nurse/doctor wages and patient complexity.
Balances commercial hospital prices against CMS clinical safety, infection control, and patient experience.
Aligned Regional Benchmark Peer
Eastern Plumas Hospital - Portola Campus prices shoppable and inpatient services (6.2× to 9.2× Medicare, divergence 1.48×) in alignment with regional hospital peers (1.00× Fair BaseRate). Reviewing plan-specific negotiated rates and cash discounts helps lock in the lowest out-of-pocket tier.
Where They're Good (Patient & Payer Edge)
- Bottom-quartile procedures (Q25) price at 0.78× the peer BaseRate benchmark
- Self-pay cash beats commercial insurance on 0% of shoppable procedures (99/100 Cash Honesty)
- CMS clinical safety score (85/100 safety score) with 72% 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)
- Outpatient surgery & OR suites carry a 1.9× markup over Medicare rates
- Captive ER (9.0×) & laboratory (11.3×) services average 1.48× higher multiples than routine shoppable care (6.2×)
- Upper-quartile procedures (Q75 1.28×) jump +28% above the median procedure ratio (Q50 1.00×)
- Unnegotiated chargemaster list prices average 8.6× Medicare (19¢ true HCRIS cost per $1 gross)
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 Eastern Plumas Hospital - Portola Campus
High-impact clinical procedures (MRIs, surgeries, inpatient stays, visits) are prioritized first. Use the category pills or search bar to filter all 73 published procedures.
| Procedure & Billing Code | This Hospital | vs. Fair |
|---|---|---|
| CT scan, abdomen and pelvis (with contrast) CPT Code: 74177 | $3,106 | 6.9× |
| MRI, brain (with and without contrast) CPT Code: 70553 | $1,834 | 3.6× |
| CT scan, abdomen and pelvis (no contrast) CPT Code: 74176 | $1,619 | 5.3× |
| Echocardiogram (heart ultrasound) CPT Code: 93306 | $1,584 | 2.7× |
| CT scan, head (with and without contrast) CPT Code: 70470 | $1,285 | 5.0× |
| MRI, knee or other leg joint CPT Code: 73721 | $1,278 | 3.5× |
| Blood transfusion CPT Code: 36430 | $1,242 | 2.5× |
| Colonoscopy with biopsy CPT Code: 45380 | $1,190 | 0.9× |
| MRI, lower back (no contrast) CPT Code: 72148 | $1,137 | 3.4× |
| CT scan, pelvis CPT Code: 72192 | $1,085 | 6.7× |
| CT scan, chest (no contrast) CPT Code: 71250 | $1,104 | 6.6× |
| Colonoscopy (diagnostic) CPT Code: 45378 | $1,080 | 1.1× |
| Upper endoscopy with biopsy CPT Code: 43239 | $1,046 | 1.1× |
| CT scan, head (no contrast) CPT Code: 70450 | $1,006 | 6.3× |
| CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine) CPT Code: 72131 | $915 | 5.4× |
| CT scan, neck (cervical spine) CPT Code: 72125 | $893 | 5.3× |
| CT scan, sinuses CPT Code: 70486 | $766 | 4.6× |
| Ultrasound, leg veins (duplex) CPT Code: 93970 | $791 | 2.9× |
| Diagnostic mammogram (both breasts) CPT Code: 77066 | $691 | 4.7× |
| MRI, brain (no contrast) CPT Code: 70551 | $660 | 1.9× |
| Ultrasound, abdomen (complete) CPT Code: 76700 | $621 | 4.6× |
| Electrocardiogram (EKG, tracing only) CPT Code: 93005 | $557 | 8.7× |
| Ultrasound, pelvis CPT Code: 76856 | $427 | 3.3× |
| Ultrasound, abdomen (limited) CPT Code: 76705 | $383 | 3.0× |
| Ultrasound, thyroid and neck CPT Code: 76536 | $373 | 2.8× |
Audit a Bill or Quote at Eastern Plumas Hospital - Portola Campus (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 ($3,106) Beats Your Bill
Eastern Plumas Hospital - Portola Campus's published 45 CFR § 180 self-pay cash rate is $3,106 (vs. $3,106 commercial insurer median). Ask billing to reclassify the visit to prompt-pay self-pay if it beats your deductible.
Negotiate Toward $448 Fair BaseRate ($356 Medicare)
Your bill ($3,882) is $3,434 above the denoised Fair BaseRate ($448) and 10.9× the $356 Medicare rate.
Financial Assistance Policy (FAP) & Amounts Generally Billed (AGB)
Public IRS & CMS ownership records classify Eastern Plumas Hospital - Portola Campus 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
CMS Price Transparency Administrative Enforcement Log
Factual public administrative actions published by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services regarding 45 CFR § 180 compliance at Eastern Plumas Hospital - Portola Campus. Prior administrative notices do not necessarily reflect current compliance status.
- 2026-04-28·cap_corrective_action
CAP Request
Recorded - 2026-01-23·warning_notice
Warning Notice
Recorded
Source: CMS Hospital Care Compare. 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 Eastern Plumas Hospital - Portola Campus.
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.