Price Comparison Report

MRI Brain with and without Contrast

Durham, NC · 6 facilities · CPT 70553 · September 06, 2026

Summary

6 facilities within 25 miles of Durham publish prices for MRI Brain with and without Contrast. Cash prices range from $1,402 to $3,118 — a 2.2x difference for an identical procedure. The North Carolina average is $3,441.

$1,402 lowest
$3,118 highest
Best Value

Duke University Hospital

Durham, VA · Duke Health · 0.0 mi

$1,402 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 $1,402 is below the statewide average of $3,441.

All facilities ranked by price

1
Duke University Hospital 5★ · 0.0 mi · For-profit
$1,402
2
Duke Regional Hospital 4★ · 0.0 mi · Local government
$1,402
3
Wakemed, Raleigh Campus 4★ · 20.8 mi · Nonprofit
$1,833
4
Rex Hospital 5★ · 20.8 mi · State government
$3,118
5
Unc Hospitals 5★ · 10.4 mi · State government
$3,118
Complete facility data
# Facility Cash Price Gross Charge Markup CMS Stars Patient Rating Ownership
1 Duke University Hospital Duke Health Durham, NC · 0.0 mi $1,402 $5,192 3.7x 5/5 80.0% For-profit
2 Duke Regional Hospital Duke Health Durham, NC · 0.0 mi $1,402 $5,192 3.7x 4/5 71.0% Local government
3 Wakemed, Raleigh Campus WakeMed Raleigh, NC · 20.8 mi $1,833 $4,823 2.63x 4/5 71.0% Nonprofit
4 Rex Hospital UNC Health Raleigh, NC · 20.8 mi $3,118 $5,196 1.67x 5/5 80.0% State government
5 Unc Hospitals UNC Health Chapel Hill, NC · 10.4 mi $3,118 $5,196 1.67x 5/5 78.0% State government
6 Duke Health Raleigh Hospital Duke Health Raleigh, NC · 19.2 mi — $4,513 — — —

Insurance negotiated rates by facility

The rates below are what each insurer has contractually agreed to pay this hospital for MRI Brain with and without Contrast. Your actual out-of-pocket cost depends on your deductible status and copay structure.

Duke University Hospital

Cash: $1,402
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO $332 -$1,070
Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare Advantage/Medicare Advantage HMO/Medicare Advantage PPO $344 -$1,058
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $344 -$1,058
Troy Health Medicare Advantage $348 -$1,054
VOANS Medicare Advantage $348 -$1,054
Aetna Medicare Advantage PPO $350 -$1,051
Humana Medicare Advantage $352 -$1,050
Cigna Medicare Advantage $355 -$1,047
Liberty Medicare Advantage $355 -$1,047
UnitedHealthcare Commercial/EPO/PPO $503 -$898
Aetna Whole Health $672 -$730
Alliance Health Managed Medicaid $1,174 -$228
AmeriHealth Managed Medicaid $1,174 -$228
Blue Cross Blue Shield Managed Medicaid $1,174 -$228
Carolina Complete Health Managed Medicaid $1,174 -$228

10 additional plans not shown.

Duke Regional Hospital

Cash: $1,402
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO $336 -$1,066
Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare Advantage/Medicare Advantage HMO/Medicare Advantage PPO $348 -$1,054
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $348 -$1,054
Troy Health Medicare Advantage $348 -$1,054
VOANS Medicare Advantage $348 -$1,054
Aetna Medicare Advantage PPO $355 -$1,047
Cigna Medicare Advantage $355 -$1,047
Liberty Medicare Advantage $355 -$1,047
Humana Medicare Advantage $357 -$1,045
Aetna Whole Health $747 -$655
AmeriHealth Managed Medicaid $835 -$566
Blue Cross Blue Shield Managed Medicaid $835 -$566
Carolina Complete Health Managed Medicaid $835 -$566
Trillium Managed Medicaid $835 -$566
Alliance Health Managed Medicaid $928 -$474

10 additional plans not shown.

Wakemed, Raleigh Campus

Cash: $1,833
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Aetna Medicare Advantage $345 -$1,488
Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare Advantage $345 -$1,488
Wellcare Medicare Advantage $345 -$1,488
Liberty Medicare Advantage $352 -$1,481
Pruitt Medicare Advantage $352 -$1,481
Alignment Medicare Advantage $362 -$1,470
Ambetter Exchange $465 -$1,368
Aetna Narrow Network $861 -$972
AmeriHealth Managed Medicaid $865 -$967
Carolina Complete Managed Medicaid $865 -$967
Wellcare Managed Medicaid $865 -$967
Cigna Exchange $1,418 -$415
Aetna Preferred $1,581 -$252
First Health Coventry Carelink $2,219 +$386
Blue Cross Blue Shield Commercial $2,402 +$570

6 additional plans not shown.

Rex Hospital

Cash: $3,118
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Aetna MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $345 -$2,772
ALIGNMENT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $345 -$2,772
ALIGNMENT SMART HMO $345 -$2,772
Blue Cross Blue Shield MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $345 -$2,772
Cigna MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $345 -$2,772
Medicare MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $345 -$2,772
HEALTH TEAM ADVANTAGE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $345 -$2,772
Humana MEDICARE ADVANTAGE GOLD PLUS $345 -$2,772
LIBERTY MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $345 -$2,772
TRICARE HMO $345 -$2,772
UnitedHealthcare MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $345 -$2,772
WELLCARE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $345 -$2,772
Aetna CHOICE POS $1,044 -$2,074
Aetna STATE HEALTH PLAN $1,044 -$2,074
Blue Cross Blue Shield BLUE HOME $1,094 -$2,024

13 additional plans not shown.

Unc Hospitals

Cash: $3,118
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Aetna MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $348 -$2,769
ALIGNMENT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $348 -$2,769
ALIGNMENT PREFERRED PLUS HMO $348 -$2,769
Blue Cross Blue Shield MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $348 -$2,769
Cigna MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $348 -$2,769
Medicare MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $348 -$2,769
HEALTH TEAM ADVANTAGE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $348 -$2,769
Humana MEDICARE ADVANTAGE GOLD PLUS $348 -$2,769
Humana MEDICARE ADVANTAGE STATE HEALTH PLAN $348 -$2,769
LIBERTY MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $348 -$2,769
TRICARE HMO $348 -$2,769
UnitedHealthcare MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $348 -$2,769
WELLCARE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $348 -$2,769
CAROLINA COMPLETE HEALTH MANAGED MEDICAID $1,600 -$1,517

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 MRI Brain with and without Contrast (CPT 70553). 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)
Wakemed, Raleigh Campus Nonprofit — Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Rex Hospital State government — N/A (for-profit)
Unc Hospitals State government — N/A (for-profit)
Duke Health Raleigh Hospital — 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.