CMS Price Transparency Data

MRI, knee or other leg joint

Facility: University of Illinois Hospital and Clinics

Billing Code: 73721 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price high confidence

A fair price for this

$224

about 0.9× the $244 Medicare rate · typically $200–$407

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$217

About the fair price

about $7 under the fair price · 0.9× Medicare

Medicare pays $244 Fair price $224 This hospital $217 Cash price $2,171 Hospital's list price $3,468

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other IL hospitals

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

Cheapest $63 Priciest $217

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

⚠ The cash price looks unusually high next to the insurance price — it may be the full list price, not a real cash discount. Call to confirm the self-pay rate.

A fair price for a MRI, knee or other leg joint is about $224 (about 0.9× the $244 Medicare rate). University of Illinois Hospital and Clinics charges insurers about $217, or about $2,171 in cash — about the fair price. Located in Chicago, IL.

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	$64 - $315	26%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$80 - $381	33%
Aetnamajor	$64 - $409	26%
Cignamajor	$104 - $1,109	43%
Health Net	$91 - $573	37%
HealthLink	$101 - $1,406	41%
Meridian	$115 - $381	47%
Molina	$52 - $381	21%
WellCare	$68 - $217	28%
+ 28 smaller / regional plans	$64 - $1,518

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 2,171), 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: 73721.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm University of Illinois Hospital and Clinics is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 73721.
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 University of Illinois Hospital and Clinics

Compare: MRI, knee or other leg joint at other IL hospitals

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