CMS Price Transparency Data

Ultrasound, thyroid and neck

Facility: Essentia Health St Joseph's Medical Center

Billing Code: 76536 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price high confidence

A fair price for this

$114

about 1.1× the $107 Medicare rate · typically $113–$132

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$114

About the fair price

1.1× Medicare

Medicare pays $107 Fair price $114 This hospital $114 Cash price $425 Hospital's list price $632

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other MN hospitals

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

Cheapest $30 Priciest $114

Black dot = this hospital, among the 9 MN 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 Ultrasound, thyroid and neck is about $114 (about 1.1× the $107 Medicare rate). Essentia Health St Joseph's Medical Center charges insurers about $114, or about $425 in cash — about the fair price. Located in Brainerd, MN.

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	$114 - $481	107%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$114 - $442	107%
Aetnamajor	$537	503%
Cignamajor	$465	435%
HealthPartners	$114 - $465	107%
Medica	$114 - $460	107%
Sanford Health Plan	$271 - $285	254%
Security Health Plan	$114	107%
UCare	$114 - $416	107%
+ 12 smaller / regional plans	$106 - $487

Government programs also on file: Medicare.

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 425), 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: 76536.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm Essentia Health St Joseph's Medical Center is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 76536.
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 Essentia Health St Joseph's Medical Center

Compare: Ultrasound, thyroid and neck at other MN hospitals

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