CMS Price Transparency Data

MRI, brain (no contrast)

Facility: Mainehealth Stephens Hospital

Billing Code: 70551 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price medium confidence

A fair price for this

$222

about 0.9× the $244 Medicare rate · typically $178–$854

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$210

About the fair price

about $12 under the fair price · 0.9× Medicare

Medicare pays $244 Fair price $222 This hospital $210 Cash price $1,492 Hospital's list price $1,492

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other ME hospitals

On the higher side — 6 of 8 other ME hospitals charge less.

Cheapest $176 Priciest $224

Black dot = this hospital, among the 9 ME 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 (no contrast) is about $222 (about 0.9× the $244 Medicare rate). Mainehealth Stephens Hospital charges insurers about $210, or about $1,492 in cash — about the fair price. Located in Norway, ME.

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	$80 - $1,432	33%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$70 - $1,394	29%
Aetnamajor	$70 - $1,364	29%
Cignamajor	$1,391	571%
Humanamajor	$80 - $582	33%
Harvard Pilgrim	$134 - $1,447	55%
WellCare	$84 - $605	34%
+ 1 smaller / regional plan	$141 - $1,418

Excludes 1 rental-network / third-party entry (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 1,492), 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 Mainehealth Stephens Hospital 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 Mainehealth Stephens Hospital

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

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