Summary

3 facilities within 25 miles of Chapel Hill publish prices for Office Visit Established Patient Level 4. Cash prices range from $159 to $244 — a 1.5x difference for an identical procedure. The North Carolina average is $208.

Choosing the lowest-priced facility over the highest saves $84. The lowest-priced facility (Duke University Hospital) has a 5-star CMS quality rating — lower price does not mean lower quality.

$159 lowest
$244 highest
Best Value

Duke University Hospital

Durham, VA · Duke Health · 10.4 mi

$159 Cash price
5/5 CMS rating
80.0% Patient satisfaction

Lowest price among hospitals rated 5 stars or above. Patient satisfaction: 80%. Cash price of $159 is below the statewide average of $208.

All facilities ranked by price

1
Duke University Hospital 5★ · 10.4 mi · For-profit
$159
2
Duke Regional Hospital 4★ · 10.4 mi · Local government
$159
3
Unc Hospitals 5★ · 0.0 mi · State government
$244
Complete facility data
# Facility Cash Price Gross Charge Markup CMS Stars Patient Rating Ownership
1 Duke University Hospital Duke Health Durham, NC · 10.4 mi $159 $318 2.0x 5/5 80.0% For-profit
2 Duke Regional Hospital Duke Health Durham, NC · 10.4 mi $159 $318 2.0x 4/5 71.0% Local government
3 Unc Hospitals UNC Health Chapel Hill, NC · 0.0 mi $244 $406 1.67x 5/5 78.0% State government

Insurance negotiated rates by facility

The rates below are what each insurer has contractually agreed to pay this hospital for Office Visit Established Patient Level 4. Your actual out-of-pocket cost depends on your deductible status and copay structure.

Duke University Hospital

Cash: $159
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Alliance Health Managed Medicaid $62 -$97
Partners Managed Medicaid $62 -$97
Trillium Managed Medicaid $62 -$97
Piedmont Health Medicare Advantage $82 -$77
Troy Health Medicare Advantage $82 -$77
VOANS Medicare Advantage $82 -$77
Liberty Medicare Advantage $83 -$76
Cigna Medicare Advantage $84 -$75
AmeriHealth Managed Medicaid $89 -$70
Blue Cross Blue Shield Managed Medicaid $89 -$70
Carolina Complete Health Managed Medicaid $89 -$70
UnitedHealthcare Managed Medicaid $89 -$70
Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO $89 -$70
Humana Medicare Advantage $93 -$66
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $93 -$66

10 additional plans not shown.

Duke Regional Hospital

Cash: $159
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
AmeriHealth Managed Medicaid $62 -$97
Blue Cross Blue Shield Managed Medicaid $62 -$97
Carolina Complete Health Managed Medicaid $62 -$97
Alliance Health Managed Medicaid $62 -$97
Partners Managed Medicaid $62 -$97
Trillium Managed Medicaid $62 -$97
UnitedHealthcare Managed Medicaid $65 -$94
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $79 -$80
Piedmont Health Medicare Advantage $82 -$77
Troy Health Medicare Advantage $82 -$77
VOANS Medicare Advantage $82 -$77
Cigna Medicare Advantage $83 -$76
Liberty Medicare Advantage $83 -$76
Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO $89 -$70
Humana Medicare Advantage $93 -$66

10 additional plans not shown.

Unc Hospitals

Cash: $244
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Blue Cross Blue Shield BLUE HOME $85 -$159
Blue Cross Blue Shield BLUE VALUE $104 -$140
CAROLINA COMPLETE HEALTH MANAGED MEDICAID $125 -$119
HEALTHY BLUE NORTH CAROLINA MANAGED MEDICAID $125 -$119
UnitedHealthcare MANAGED MEDICAID $125 -$119
WELLCARE MANAGED MEDICAID $125 -$119
Aetna MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $126 -$118
ALIGNMENT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $126 -$118
ALIGNMENT PREFERRED PLUS HMO $126 -$118
Blue Cross Blue Shield MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $126 -$118
Cigna MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $126 -$118
Medicare MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $126 -$118
HEALTH TEAM ADVANTAGE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $126 -$118
Humana MEDICARE ADVANTAGE GOLD PLUS $126 -$118

19 additional plans not shown.

Before you call

The data in this report is from each hospital's publicly filed prices. Here's how to use it.

Confirm the price

Call the hospital's billing department and ask for a price estimate or Good Faith Estimate for Office Visit Established Patient Level 4 (CPT 99214). Under federal law, they must provide this. Compare it to the published price in this report.

Ask about cash pay

If you haven't met your deductible, ask for the cash/self-pay rate. At many hospitals, the cash price is lower than the insurance-negotiated rate. You can see this in the insurance table above — some negotiated rates exceed the cash price.

Compare before you schedule

You are not required to use the facility your doctor referred you to. You can request a referral to any in-network facility. The same procedure, same quality — sometimes at a fraction of the price.

Ask about financial help

Most nonprofit hospitals in Virginia offer financial assistance to patients based on household income. This is separate from insurance — even insured patients can qualify. Ask billing for their Financial Assistance Policy.

Financial assistance by facility

Nonprofit hospitals are legally required to have financial assistance programs. Below is what we know about each facility's charitable care.

Facility Status Charity Care Provided How to Apply
Duke University Hospital For-profit N/A (for-profit)
Duke Regional Hospital Local government N/A (for-profit)
Unc Hospitals State government N/A (for-profit)

What to do next

  1. Identify your top 2-3 facilities based on price, quality rating, and distance. The data in this report shows that lower price does not mean lower quality — check the star ratings.
  2. Call billing before you schedule. Confirm the published price. Ask for a Good Faith Estimate. Ask whether there's a prompt-pay or cash-pay discount beyond the listed rate.
  3. Check your deductible status. If you haven't met your deductible, compare the cash rate to what you'd owe through insurance. In some cases, paying cash is cheaper than using your plan.
  4. Apply for financial assistance if your household income is under $60,000-$125,000 (thresholds vary). Most eligible patients never apply because they don't know the program exists.
  5. Get everything in writing. Before your procedure, get a written price estimate. After, review the bill line by line. Roughly 80% of hospital bills contain errors (Becker's Hospital Review).

Data sources

Hospital prices
Published machine-readable files, required under CMS Hospital Price Transparency Rule (45 CFR Part 180)
Quality ratings
CMS Hospital Compare, updated quarterly
Patient satisfaction
HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems)
Financial data
CMS Cost Reports (charity care, revenue) and IRS 990 filings (officer compensation)

This report is for informational purposes only. It is not medical advice. Every price shown is a price a hospital published — not an estimate. Actual out-of-pocket costs depend on your insurance plan, deductible status, and clinical circumstances. Consult your healthcare provider and insurer before making decisions.