McKenzie Health System
120 N Delaware Street, Sandusky, MI 48471 · 108 Priced Procedures · 60% Patient Recommendation
Typical commercial prices here are 23% below the fair benchmark (0.77×) after accounting for local nurse/doctor wages and patient complexity.
Balances commercial hospital prices against CMS clinical safety, infection control, and patient experience.
Uniform Value Leader · Low-Cost Across Departments
McKenzie Health System maintains low, disciplined commercial pricing across both routine shoppable procedures (0.7× Medicare, p50 0.79× Fair BaseRate) and emergency/ancillary services (0.9× Medicare, p75 0.93× Fair BaseRate). Both insured and self-pay patients benefit from below-benchmark rates across departments.
Where They're Good (Patient & Payer Edge)
- Elective shoppable care is priced 23% below peer Fair BaseRate (0.77×)
- Self-pay cash beats commercial insurance on 15% of shoppable procedures (99/100 Cash Honesty)
- CMS clinical safety score (66/100 safety score) with 60% patient recommendation
- IRS 501(c)(3) charity care provides free care up to 200% FPL and discounted care up to 400% FPL (42.8% AGB cap)
Where You Can Get Burned (Markup Traps)
- Even at low-cost facilities (0.77× Fair BaseRate), out-of-network or unnegotiated chargemaster bills can exceed commercial medians — confirm in-network status or request a self-pay cash quote up front.
- Captive ER (1.0×) & laboratory (1.2×) services average 1.29× higher multiples than routine shoppable care (0.7×)
- Upper-quartile procedures (Q75 0.93×) jump +18% above the median procedure ratio (Q50 0.79×)
- Unnegotiated chargemaster list prices average 5.1× Medicare (25¢ true HCRIS cost per $1 gross)
Pre-scheduled outpatient procedures where patients can comparison-shop.
Emergency, inpatient DRG, lab, and specialty drug lines billed after admission.
Detects median-gaming when upper-quartile codes spike above the p50 median.
Procedure Prices at McKenzie Health System
High-impact clinical procedures (MRIs, surgeries, inpatient stays, visits) are prioritized first. Use the category pills or search bar to filter all 108 published procedures.
| Procedure & Billing Code | This Hospital | vs. Fair |
|---|---|---|
| MRI, brain (with and without contrast) CPT Code: 70553 | $3,906 | 7.6× |
| Total hip replacement CPT Code: 27130 | $2,233 | 0.2× |
| Total knee replacement CPT Code: 27447 | $2,231 | 0.2× |
| MRI, lower back (no contrast) CPT Code: 72148 | $1,992 | 5.9× |
| MRI, brain (no contrast) CPT Code: 70551 | $1,992 | 5.8× |
| MRI, knee or other leg joint CPT Code: 73721 | $1,992 | 5.4× |
| CT scan, abdomen and pelvis (with contrast) CPT Code: 74177 | $1,910 | 4.3× |
| Trauma team activation HCPCS Code: G0390 | $1,494 | 1.0× |
| CT scan, abdomen and pelvis (no contrast) CPT Code: 74176 | $1,241 | 4.1× |
| CT scan, head (with and without contrast) CPT Code: 70470 | $1,182 | 4.6× |
| CT scan, neck (cervical spine) CPT Code: 72125 | $1,021 | 6.0× |
| CT scan, chest (no contrast) CPT Code: 71250 | $1,003 | 6.0× |
| CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine) CPT Code: 72131 | $998 | 5.9× |
| CT scan, head (with contrast) CPT Code: 70460 | $996 | 4.1× |
| Gallbladder removal (laparoscopic) CPT Code: 47562 | $957 | 0.2× |
| CT scan, pelvis CPT Code: 72192 | $900 | 5.5× |
| Ultrasound, leg veins (duplex) CPT Code: 93970 | $916 | 3.4× |
| CT scan, sinuses CPT Code: 70486 | $861 | 5.2× |
| Knee arthroscopy with meniscus repair CPT Code: 29881 | $780 | 0.2× |
| CT scan, head (no contrast) CPT Code: 70450 | $717 | 4.5× |
| Inguinal hernia repair CPT Code: 49505 | $731 | 0.2× |
| Diagnostic mammogram (both breasts) CPT Code: 77066 | $646 | 4.4× |
| Colonoscopy with biopsy CPT Code: 45380 | $647 | 0.5× |
| Ultrasound, abdomen (complete) CPT Code: 76700 | $607 | 4.5× |
| Ultrasound, thyroid and neck CPT Code: 76536 | $575 | 4.4× |
Audit a Bill or Quote at McKenzie Health System (Zero PHI Required)
Statutory 501(r) AGB Cap Limits Bill to $2,092
At 274% FPL (201%–400% FPL tier), 26 U.S.C. § 501(r)(5) caps FAP-eligible bills at Amounts Generally Billed (42.9% of gross = $2,092).
Self-Pay Cash Rate ($3,906) Beats Your Bill
McKenzie Health System's published 45 CFR § 180 self-pay cash rate is $3,906 (vs. $3,906 commercial insurer median). Ask billing to reclassify the visit to prompt-pay self-pay if it beats your deductible.
Negotiate Toward $511 Fair BaseRate ($356 Medicare)
Your bill ($4,883) is $4,372 above the denoised Fair BaseRate ($511) and 13.7× the $356 Medicare rate.
Financial Assistance Policy (FAP) & Amounts Generally Billed (AGB)
Hospital-Specific CMS HCRIS Benchmark (42.9% of gross charges)
Under 26 U.S.C. § 501(r)(5), a tax-exempt hospital organization may not bill FAP-eligible patients more than Amounts Generally Billed (AGB) to individuals with insurance covering emergency or medically necessary care. Derived from this facility’s reported CMS HCRIS cost-to-charge & insurer allowance filings. Verify your exact Financial Assistance Policy (FAP) determination directly with the billing office.
Clinical Quality, Patient Experience & Infection Benchmarks
Source: CMS Hospital Care Compare (25 completed HCAHPS patient surveys). Clinical quality metrics summarize historical facility-wide cohorts and are not medical advice for individual care decisions.
How to Pay Less Nearby: Freestanding Centers, Insurer Leverage & Outpatient Savings
2D regional comparison of commercial negotiated price index against CMS clinical quality composite for McKenzie Health System.
Verify the Raw Data: Official Hospital MRF, CMS Medicare.gov & Federal Filings
Safe-Harbor Data Corrections: Parsed directly from public 45 CFR § 180 hospital filings, CMS Care Compare, and CMS HCRIS cost reports. Hospital compliance officers may submit updated MRF URLs or rate tables for verification.