CMS Price Transparency Data

MRI, brain (with and without contrast)

Facility: Methodist Hospitals Inc

Billing Code: 70553 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price high confidence

A fair price for this

$673

about 1.9× the $356 Medicare rate · typically $412–$923

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$727

About the fair price

about $54 over the fair price · 2.0× Medicare

Medicare pays $356 Fair price $673 This hospital $727 Cash price $6,313 Hospital's list price $9,018

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other IN hospitals

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

Cheapest $116 Priciest $727

Black dot = this hospital, among the 9 IN 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, brain (with and without contrast) is about $673 (about 1.9× the $356 Medicare rate). Methodist Hospitals Inc charges insurers about $727, or about $6,313 in cash — about the fair price. Located in Gary, IN.

What each insurance company pays

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

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

✓ UnitedHealthcare✓ Blue Cross Blue Shield✓ Aetna✓ Cigna✓ Humana Kaiser 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	$367 - $756	103%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$367 - $7,755	103%
Aetnamajor	$367 - $6,673	103%
Cignamajor	$3,463 - $3,761	972%
Humanamajor	$367 - $756	103%
Ambetter (Centene)	$735	206%
CareSource	$606 - $756	170%
MagnaCare	$1,745	490%
+ 6 smaller / regional plans	$375 - $8,026

Government programs also on file: Medicare, Medicaid.

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 6,313), 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: 70553.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm Methodist Hospitals Inc is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 70553.
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 Methodist Hospitals Inc

Compare: MRI, brain (with and without contrast) at other IN hospitals

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