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State Price Transparency Index 69 Mapped Hospitals 141 Shoppable Procedures 0% vs. U.S. Median (near the U.S. average)

Colorado Hospital Rates

Compare cash discount rates, commercial insurance prices, and fair price benchmarks across all 69 Colorado 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.Near Fair BaseRate Benchmark
1.00×vs. U.S. Fair Price Average
Position vs. 1.00× Fair PriceRight at U.S. Average (0%) 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 69 Colorado hospitals, typical commercial prices match the U.S. fair price average (1.00×) after accounting for local wages and patient complexity.

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 · Colorado Market & Best ValueSummarizes statewide hospital price coverage across Colorado, the average commercial markup over federal Medicare rates, and the #1 best-value hospital in the state.69 Hospitals · 141 Procedures
Hospitals Priced69 in COTotal hospitals in Colorado with verified machine-readable price disclosures indexed in the Crystal.
Avg vs. Medicare1.9× MedicareAverage commercial insurance negotiated rate across Colorado hospitals compared to what federal Medicare pays for the same procedure.
Best Value in CO0.26× FairLowest confounder-adjusted hospital in Colorado: Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center (Salida) at 0.26× fair market price.

Most affordable Colorado hospital: Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center (Salida) at 0.26× the fair price (74% below benchmark).

Statewide Hospital Pricing Fingerprint69 Colorado Hospitals Analyzed

Colorado Statewide Hospital Pricing Summary

Across 69 reporting hospitals and 141 shoppable procedures in Colorado, typical commercial insurance rates sit at 1.00× the U.S. fair price average (1.9× federal Medicare rates). However, prices vary by 15.0× across the state — from 0.26× fair price at the most affordable hospitals up to 3.89× at high-markup facilities.

State Price Index: 1.00× U.S. Fair AverageAvg Commercial Rate: 1.9× Medicare
Advantage

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

  • Best-value hospital in Colorado: Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center (Salida) prices care at 0.26× the fair price benchmark.
  • Additional low-cost leaders include Gunnison Valley Hospital (Gunnison, 0.36× fair) and Rangely District Hospital (0.74× fair).
  • Bottom-quartile Colorado hospitals (Q25) charge 0.95× the fair price or less — comparing quotes before scheduling elective care saves 25%–45%.
  • Nonprofit 501(c)(3) hospitals across Colorado must provide free or discounted charity care under federal 26 U.S.C. § 501(r) income rules.
Watchout

Where Colorado Patients Get Burned (High-Markup Traps)

  • Highest-markup Colorado facilities reach 6.1× Medicare (St Thomas More Hospital in Canon City, Sterling Regional Medcenter).
  • Prices for the exact same procedure swing 15.0× between the lowest-priced (0.26×) and highest-priced (3.89×) hospitals in Colorado.
  • Emergency room, lab, and outpatient surgery facility fees carry significantly higher markups than pre-scheduled imaging or freestanding centers.
Most Affordable CO Hospitals (Bottom 25%)Best Value Tier
0.26× – 0.95× Fair

Led by Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center (Salida) at 0.26× fair price.

Typical Colorado Hospital (State Median)1.9× Medicare
1.24× Fair Price

Middle-of-the-pack commercial rate across all 69 Colorado hospitals.

Highest-Markup CO Hospitals (Top 25%)15.0× State Spread
1.56× – 3.89× Fair

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

Colorado County Price & Affordability Heatmap 34 of 64 Counties with MRF Hospital Data

Colorado County-Level Hospital Price & Affordability Heatmap

Hospital price index, Medicare markup, and household affordability burden across 64 counties in Colorado

<0.94× Affordable 0.94–1.06× Near Avg 1.06–1.20× Elevated >1.20× High-Markup
El Paso County5hosps
1.11× Fair
Income $87k
Adams County5hosps
1.18× Fair
Income $91k
Denver County5hosps
1.22× Fair
Income $92k
Boulder County4hosps
1.16× Fair
Income $103k
Jefferson County3hosps
1.10× Fair
Income $108k
Mesa County3hosps
1.29× Fair
Income $71k
Larimer County3hosps
1.31× Fair
Income $91k
La Plata County2hosps
0.87× Fair
Income $85k
Douglas County2hosps
1.35× Fair
Income $146k
Arapahoe County2hosps
1.52× Fair
Income $97k
Morgan County2hosps
1.66× Fair
Income $75k
Phillips County2hosps
1.94× Fair
Income $60k
Chaffee County1hosp
0.35× Fair
Income $71k
Gunnison County1hosp
0.36× Fair
Income $77k
Rio Blanco County1hosp
0.74× Fair
Income $73k
Montrose County1hosp
0.83× Fair
Income $66k
Montezuma County1hosp
1.00× Fair
Income $63k
Pitkin County1hosp
1.00× Fair
Income $100k
Moffat County1hosp
1.00× Fair
Income $71k
Baca County1hosp
1.00× Fair
Income $40k
Routt County1hosp
1.05× Fair
Income $105k
Broomfield County1hosp
1.08× Fair
Income $121k
Weld County1hosp
1.15× Fair
Income $93k
Alamosa County1hosp
1.16× Fair
Income $51k
Showing top 24 counties with hospital price filings of 64 total in Colorado

All Hospitals in Colorado (69)

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 Colorado (141)

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

Browse Colorado by Metro Area

Local hospital comparison pages for each Colorado regional market.

Which Insurers Negotiate Prices in Colorado

Across the 70 Colorado hospitals that publish negotiated rates, here is how many hospitals each major insurance carrier has an in-network contract with.

Blue Cross Blue Shield 67 of 70 hospitals
Cigna 62 of 70 hospitals
UnitedHealthcare 62 of 70 hospitals
Aetna 61 of 70 hospitals
Humana 57 of 70 hospitals
Kaiser Permanente 50 of 70 hospitals

Also negotiating in Colorado: Devoted Health (33) · SelectHealth (24) · HealthPartners (12) · WellCare (10) · Bright Health (8) · GEHA (8).

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 →