Behavioral health residential care cost in WI
What a behavioral health residential care costs at WI hospitals — and the fair price to aim for.
Typical commercial prices here are +113% above the fair benchmark (2.13×) even 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
Fort Memorial Hospital maintains disciplined commercial pricing across both elective shoppable care (1.0× Medicare) and captive emergency/ancillary departments (1.0× Medicare). Patients and health plans benefit from predictable, below-benchmark rates (0.90× Fair BaseRate) without hidden ancillary cross-subsidization.
Where They're Good (Patient & Payer Edge)
- Elective shoppable care is priced 10% below peer Fair BaseRate (0.90×)
- Self-pay cash beats commercial insurance on 68% of shoppable procedures (99/100 Cash Honesty)
- 4-Star CMS clinical rating with 68% patient recommendation (71/100 safety score)
- IRS 501(c)(3) charity care provides free care up to 200% FPL and discounted care up to 400% FPL (35.7% AGB cap)
Where You Can Get Burned (Markup Traps)
- Even at low-cost facilities (2.13× 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.
- Commercial insurance median sits at 0.91× Fair BaseRate (1.0× Medicare), so insured patients should always compare the self-pay cash price before paying.
- Even at low-cost facilities (2.13× 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.
- Consolidated metro market (HHI 10,000) 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.
In general, WI hospitals charge above the fair price — worth shopping around here. how we calculate the BaseRate →
Compared with the rest of the country, WI’s fair BaseRate ($561) is above the national fair price of $344.
Cheapest WI hospitals for a behavioral health residential care
- Fort Memorial Hospital · Fort Atkinson $228
- Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center · La Crosse $235
- Bellin Memorial Hospital · Green Bay $237
- Richland Hospital · Richland Center $505
- Upland Hills Health · Dodgeville $714
- Bellin Health Oconto Hospital · Oconto $834
- Columbus Community Hospital · Columbus $929
- Gundersen Boscobel Area Hospital and Clinics · Boscobel $1,154
- Gundersen St Josephs Hospital and Clinics · Hillsboro $1,348
- Gundersen Moundview Hospital and Clinics · Friendship $1,480
Audit a Bill or Quote at WI Hospital Benchmark (Zero PHI Required)
Statutory 501(r) AGB Cap Limits Bill to $674
At 274% FPL (201%–400% FPL tier), 26 U.S.C. § 501(r)(5) caps FAP-eligible bills at Amounts Generally Billed (36.3% of gross = $674).
Compare Prompt-Pay Cash Rate Against Remaining Deductible
Ask WI Hospital Benchmark's billing desk for their written 45 CFR § 180 discounted self-pay cash price and Good Faith Estimate under the No Surprises Act.
Negotiate Toward $561 Fair BaseRate ($325 Medicare)
Your bill ($1,858) is $1,297 above the denoised Fair BaseRate ($561) and 5.7× the $325 Medicare rate.