CMS Price Transparency Data

MRI, brain (no contrast)

Facility: Mid-Columbia Medical Center

Billing Code: 70551 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price high confidence

A fair price for this

$127

about 0.5× the $244 Medicare rate · typically $120–$295

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$133

About the fair price

about $6 over the fair price · 0.5× Medicare

Medicare pays $244 Fair price $127 This hospital $133 Cash price $656 Hospital's list price $1,366

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other OR hospitals

One of the lower prices — 6 of 8 other OR hospitals charge more for the same procedure.

Cheapest $75 Priciest $295

Black dot = this hospital, among the 9 OR 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 $127 (about 0.5× the $244 Medicare rate). Mid-Columbia Medical Center charges insurers about $133, or about $656 in cash — about the fair price. Located in The Dalles, OR.

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	$1,306 - $2,385	536%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$67 - $8,006	27%
Aetnamajor	$80 - $2,318	33%
Cignamajor	$112 - $2,365	46%
Humanamajor	$69 - $298	28%
Amerigroup	$221 - $1,306	91%
Devoted Health	$72 - $2,712	30%
Health Net	$68 - $290	28%
Moda Health	$69 - $1,657	28%
Molina	$67 - $1,306	27%
+ 8 smaller / regional plans	$67 - $2,436

Government programs also on file: Military & VA.

Excludes 4 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 656), 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 Mid-Columbia Medical Center 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 Mid-Columbia Medical Center

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

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