CMS Price Transparency Data

Blood transfusion

Facility: CHI Health Mercy Council Bluffs

Billing Code: 36430 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price medium confidence

A fair price for this

$508

about 1.1× the $451 Medicare rate · typically $187–$1,236

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$839

Above the fair price

about $331 over the fair price · 1.9× Medicare

Medicare pays $451 Fair price $508 This hospital $839 Cash price $726 Hospital's list price $1,729

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other IA hospitals

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

Cheapest $75 Priciest $839

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

A fair price for a Blood transfusion is about $508 (about 1.1× the $451 Medicare rate). CHI Health Mercy Council Bluffs charges insurers about $839, or about $726 in cash — above the fair price. Located in Council Bluffs, IA.

This price is above the fair BaseRate — you may be able to pay less

Ask the hospital for the cash / self-pay price, check whether you qualify for financial assistance, or negotiate the bill down toward the fair price of about $508. Many patients pay well below the first number they’re quoted — the checklists below walk you through it.

What each insurance company pays

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

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

✓ UnitedHealthcare✓ Blue Cross Blue Shield✓ Humana AetnaCignaKaiser 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	$426 - $1,165	95%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$426	95%
Humanamajor	$426	95%
Ambetter (Centene)	$150 - $439	33%
Amerigroup	$415 - $447	92%
Medica	$79 - $1,836	18%
Molina	$423	94%
+ 11 smaller / regional plans	$280 - $3,259

Excludes 3 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 726), 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: 36430.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm CHI Health Mercy Council Bluffs is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 36430.
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 CHI Health Mercy Council Bluffs

Compare: Blood transfusion at other IA hospitals

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