Summary

7 facilities within 25 miles of Roanoke publish prices for MRI Brain with and without Contrast. Cash prices range from $2,298 to $4,523 — a 2.0x difference for an identical procedure. The Virginia average is $3,441.

$2,298 lowest
$4,523 highest
Best Value

Carilion Giles Community Hospital

Pearisburg, VA · Carilion Clinic · 0.1 mi

$2,298 Cash price
4/5 CMS rating
83.0% Patient satisfaction

Lowest price among hospitals rated 4 stars or above. Patient satisfaction: 83%. Cash price of $2,298 is below the statewide average of $3,441.

All facilities ranked by price

1
Carilion Giles Community Hospital 4★ · 0.1 mi · Nonprofit
$2,298
2
Carilion New River Valley Medical Center 4★ · 0.1 mi · Nonprofit
$2,298
3
Carilion Franklin Memorial Hospital 4★ · 19.0 mi · Nonprofit
$2,298
4
Carilion Rockbridge Community Hospital 3★ · 0.1 mi · Nonprofit
$2,298
5
Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital 3★ · 0.1 mi · Nonprofit
$3,526
6
Sovah Health Danville 2★ · 0.1 mi · For-profit
$4,523
Complete facility data
# Facility Cash Price Gross Charge Markup CMS Stars Patient Rating Ownership
1 Carilion Giles Community Hospital Carilion Clinic Pearisburg, VA · 0.1 mi $2,298 $6,565 2.86x 4/5 83.0% Nonprofit
2 Carilion New River Valley Medical Center Carilion Clinic Christiansburg, VA · 0.1 mi $2,298 $6,565 2.86x 4/5 69.0% Nonprofit
3 Carilion Franklin Memorial Hospital Carilion Clinic Rocky Mount, VA · 19.0 mi $2,298 $6,565 2.86x 4/5 Nonprofit
4 Carilion Rockbridge Community Hospital Carilion Clinic Lexington, VA · 0.1 mi $2,298 $6,565 2.86x 3/5 75.0% Nonprofit
5 Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital Sentara Health South Boston, VA · 0.1 mi $3,526 $7,053 2.0x 3/5 71.0% Nonprofit
6 Sovah Health Danville Danville, VA · 0.1 mi $4,523 $11,307 2.5x 2/5 59.0% For-profit
7 Lewisgale Medical Center HCA Virginia Salem, VA · 0.1 mi $17,753 2/5 57.0% For-profit

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.

Carilion Giles Community Hospital

Cash: $2,298
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Anthem Managed Medicaid $293 -$2,005
Sentara Health Plan Managed Medicaid $299 -$1,999
Aetna Medicare Advantage $306 -$1,991
Humana Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
UnitedHealthcare Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
ABH of VA (formerly Coventry) Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
Humana Dual Eligible $319 -$1,978
Humana Medicare Advantage $332 -$1,965
Anthem Medicare Advantage $332 -$1,965
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $336 -$1,962
Sentara Health Plan Medicare Advantage $342 -$1,956
Humana Tricare $355 -$1,942
Anthem Exchange $1,619 -$679
Anthem Commercial $1,798 -$499

14 additional plans not shown.

Carilion New River Valley Medical Center

Cash: $2,298
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Anthem Managed Medicaid $293 -$2,005
Sentara Health Plan Managed Medicaid $299 -$1,999
ABH of VA (formerly Coventry) Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
UnitedHealthcare Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
Humana Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
Humana Dual Eligible $319 -$1,978
Anthem Medicare Advantage $332 -$1,965
Humana Medicare Advantage $332 -$1,965
Aetna Medicare Advantage $336 -$1,962
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $336 -$1,962
Sentara Health Plan Medicare Advantage $342 -$1,956
Humana Tricare $355 -$1,942
Anthem Exchange $1,334 -$964
Anthem Commercial $1,482 -$815

14 additional plans not shown.

Carilion Franklin Memorial Hospital

Cash: $2,298
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Anthem Managed Medicaid $293 -$2,005
Sentara Health Plan Managed Medicaid $299 -$1,999
Aetna Medicare Advantage $306 -$1,991
Humana Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
UnitedHealthcare Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
ABH of VA (formerly Coventry) Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
Humana Dual Eligible $319 -$1,978
Anthem Medicare Advantage $332 -$1,965
Humana Medicare Advantage $332 -$1,965
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $336 -$1,962
Sentara Health Plan Medicare Advantage $342 -$1,956
Humana Tricare $355 -$1,942
Anthem Exchange $1,539 -$759
Anthem Commercial $1,709 -$588

14 additional plans not shown.

Carilion Rockbridge Community Hospital

Cash: $2,298
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Anthem Managed Medicaid $293 -$2,005
Sentara Health Plan Managed Medicaid $299 -$1,999
Aetna Medicare Advantage $306 -$1,991
Humana Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
ABH of VA (formerly Coventry) Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
UnitedHealthcare Managed Medicaid $307 -$1,991
Humana Dual Eligible $319 -$1,978
Anthem Medicare Advantage $332 -$1,965
Humana Medicare Advantage $332 -$1,965
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $336 -$1,962
Sentara Health Plan Medicare Advantage $342 -$1,956
Humana Tricare $355 -$1,942
Anthem Exchange $1,465 -$832
Anthem Commercial $1,628 -$670

16 additional plans not shown.

Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital

Cash: $3,526
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Sentara Health Plan Medicare Managed Care Plan $350 -$3,177
Humana Medicare Managed Care Plan $353 -$3,173
Blue Cross Blue Shield Anthem Medicare Managed Care Plan $359 -$3,167
UnitedHealthcare Snp Medicare Managed Care Plan $360 -$3,166
UnitedHealthcare All Commercial Plans $798 -$2,728
Blue Cross Blue Shield Anthem Exchange $1,100 -$2,427
Blue Cross Blue Shield Anthem Hmo $1,182 -$2,344
Blue Cross Blue Shield Anthem Ppo $1,219 -$2,308

Lewisgale Medical Center

Cash: N/A
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate
Anthem HIX $543
Anthem HMO $603
Anthem PPO $603
UnitedHealthcare AllPayerAppendix $828
Aetna SharedSavings $2,994
Lifeworks MCR $3,373
Universal Healthcare Group MCR $3,906
Virginia Health Network ULTRA $6,214
UnitedHealthcare OptionsPPO $6,746
UnitedHealthcare GlobalBenefitPlan $7,989
Aetna Broad $9,587
Greenvbrier Sporting Club COMM $10,652
Virginia Health Network COMM $12,605
Virginia Health Network WC $12,605
CorVel WorkersComp $12,782

11 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
Carilion Giles Community Hospital Nonprofit Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Carilion New River Valley Medical Center Nonprofit Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Carilion Franklin Memorial Hospital Nonprofit Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Carilion Rockbridge Community Hospital Nonprofit Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital Nonprofit Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Sovah Health Danville For-profit N/A (for-profit)
Lewisgale Medical Center For-profit 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.