CMS Price Transparency Data

MRI, brain (no contrast)

Facility: St Luke's Wood River Medical Center

Billing Code: 70551 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price medium confidence

A fair price for this

$1,244

about 5.1× the $244 Medicare rate · typically $365–$1,416

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$1,423

About the fair price

about $179 over the fair price · 5.8× Medicare

Medicare pays $244 Fair price $1,244 This hospital $1,423 Cash price $2,472 Hospital's list price $2,472

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other ID hospitals

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

Cheapest $62 Priciest $1,423

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

A fair price for a MRI, brain (no contrast) is about $1,244 (about 5.1× the $244 Medicare rate). St Luke's Wood River Medical Center charges insurers about $1,423, or about $2,472 in cash — about the fair price. Located in Ketchum, ID.

What each insurance company pays

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

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

✓ UnitedHealthcare✓ Blue Cross Blue Shield✓ Aetna✓ Cigna HumanaKaiser 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	$1,111 - $2,794	456%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$1,069 - $2,639	439%
Aetnamajor	$1,164 - $2,933	477%
Cignamajor	$1,727 - $2,871	708%
GEHA	$1,681 - $2,794	690%
Moda Health	$1,634 - $2,717	670%
PacificSource	$1,746 - $2,902	716%
+ 2 smaller / regional plans	$1,058 - $2,994

Government programs also on file: Medicare, Military & VA.

Excludes 2 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 2,472), 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 St Luke's Wood River Medical Center 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 St Luke's Wood River Medical Center

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

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