Lovelace Medical Center
601 Dr Martin Luther King Jr Ave Ne, Albuquerque, NM 87102 · 84 Priced Procedures · 66% Patient Recommendation
Typical commercial prices here match the fair market benchmark (1.00×) after accounting for local nurse/doctor wages and patient complexity.
3-Star CMS clinical quality rating paired with 1.00× fair market pricing.
Specialty Drug & Surgical Margin Engine
Lovelace Medical Center concentrates commercial margin in outpatient surgical suites (3.9× Medicare) and specialty drug infusions (3.6× Medicare) relative to routine diagnostics (14.9×). Comparing freestanding ambulatory surgery centers or specialty pharmacy options before treatment yields substantial savings.
Where They're Good (Patient & Payer Edge)
- Bottom-quartile procedures (Q25) price at 0.78× the peer BaseRate benchmark
- Self-pay cash beats commercial insurance on 85% of shoppable procedures (99/100 Cash Honesty)
- 2-Star CMS clinical rating with 66% patient recommendation (61/100 safety score)
- Binding Good Faith Estimate rights under 45 CFR § 149.610 protect self-pay patients before scheduling
Where You Can Get Burned (Markup Traps)
- Outpatient surgery & OR suites carry a 3.9× markup over Medicare rates
- Captive ER (17.4×) & laboratory (24.9×) services average 1.39× higher multiples than routine shoppable care (12.0×)
- Upper-quartile procedures (Q75 1.28×) jump +28% above the median procedure ratio (Q50 1.00×)
- Consolidated metro market (HHI 3,098) limits in-network hospital competition (Highly Concentrated Monopoly (>2,500))
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 Lovelace Medical Center
High-impact clinical procedures (MRIs, surgeries, inpatient stays, visits) are prioritized first. Use the category pills or search bar to filter all 84 published procedures.
| Procedure & Billing Code | This Hospital | vs. Fair |
|---|---|---|
| CT scan, abdomen and pelvis (with contrast) CPT Code: 74177 | $2,592 | 5.8× |
| CT scan, abdomen and pelvis (no contrast) CPT Code: 74176 | $2,229 | 7.4× |
| MRI, brain (with and without contrast) CPT Code: 70553 | $1,951 | 3.8× |
| CT scan, head (with and without contrast) CPT Code: 70470 | $1,463 | 5.7× |
| MRI, knee or other leg joint CPT Code: 73721 | $1,472 | 4.0× |
| Upper endoscopy with biopsy CPT Code: 43239 | $1,341 | 1.4× |
| MRI, lower back (no contrast) CPT Code: 72148 | $1,282 | 3.8× |
| CT scan, neck (cervical spine) CPT Code: 72125 | $1,215 | 7.2× |
| CT scan, head (with contrast) CPT Code: 70460 | $1,215 | 5.0× |
| Injection procedure for pain management HCPCS Code: G0260 | $1,234 | 1.4× |
| Colonoscopy with biopsy CPT Code: 45380 | $1,191 | 0.9× |
| CT scan, pelvis CPT Code: 72192 | $1,111 | 6.8× |
| CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine) CPT Code: 72131 | $1,110 | 6.6× |
| Colonoscopy (diagnostic) CPT Code: 45378 | $1,082 | 1.1× |
| CT scan, chest (no contrast) CPT Code: 71250 | $1,049 | 6.3× |
| CT scan, head (no contrast) CPT Code: 70450 | $997 | 6.2× |
| CT scan, sinuses CPT Code: 70486 | $992 | 6.0× |
| MRI, brain (no contrast) CPT Code: 70551 | $974 | 2.8× |
| Blood transfusion CPT Code: 36430 | $797 | 1.6× |
| Echocardiogram (heart ultrasound) CPT Code: 93306 | $678 | 1.2× |
| Ultrasound, leg veins (duplex) CPT Code: 93970 | $519 | 1.9× |
| Ultrasound, abdomen (complete) CPT Code: 76700 | $447 | 3.3× |
| X-ray, lower back CPT Code: 72110 | $381 | 3.4× |
| Ultrasound, abdomen (limited) CPT Code: 76705 | $370 | 2.9× |
| Ultrasound, pelvis CPT Code: 76856 | $362 | 2.8× |
Audit a Bill or Quote at Lovelace Medical Center (Zero PHI Required)
Above Standard 400% FPL Financial-Assistance Ceiling
At 274% FPL, you exceed the standard 400% FPL tier, though medical-hardship caps (when bills exceed 10% of annual income) may still apply.
Self-Pay Cash Rate ($2,592) Beats Your Bill
Lovelace Medical Center's published 45 CFR § 180 self-pay cash rate is $2,592 (vs. $2,592 commercial insurer median). Ask billing to reclassify the visit to prompt-pay self-pay if it beats your deductible.
Negotiate Toward $448 Fair BaseRate ($356 Medicare)
Your bill ($8,639) is $8,191 above the denoised Fair BaseRate ($448) and 24.3× the $356 Medicare rate.
Financial Assistance Policy (FAP) & Amounts Generally Billed (AGB)
Public IRS & CMS ownership records classify Lovelace Medical Center as a non-501(c)(3) facility. Federal 26 U.S.C. § 501(r) statutory charity-care caps apply specifically to tax-exempt nonprofit hospitals, though state hospital fair-pricing statutes and prompt-pay self-pay discounts may still apply.
Clinical Quality, Patient Experience & Infection Benchmarks
Healthcare-Associated Infections (CDC NHSN / CMS HAI)
1.00 SIR = National Predicted Baseline (Lower Is Safer)CMS Price Transparency Administrative Enforcement Log
Factual public administrative actions published by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services regarding 45 CFR § 180 compliance at Lovelace Medical Center. Prior administrative notices do not necessarily reflect current compliance status.
- 2025-04-24·administrative_or_closure
Met Requirements
Recorded
Source: CMS Hospital Care Compare (775 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 Lovelace Medical Center.
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.