We support price transparency. For our patients to understand their potential financial liability for hospital and/or clinic services, we are making our charges available to patients. Hospital or clinic charges vary based on the type of care provided. The price can differ from patient to patient for the same services. The price will be different for complications or different treatment for the patient’s personal health condition. Patients also may qualify for financial assistance.
Please contact the Patient Financial Services Department at 641-732-6121 or via email at mc43mcrmcpfs@mercyhealth.com for a price estimate or to find out if you qualify for financial assistance.
Click here to use the Price Transparency Tool and access our Machine Readable Files (MRF).
No Surprises Act
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 was enacted on December 2020 and contains many provisions to help protect consumers from surprise bills starting in 2022, including the No Surprises Act under title I and Transparency under title II. Find more information about the No Surprises Act by downloading this pdf.
Helpful Definitions
Understanding health care terminology around price poses significant challenges for patients. If you ask a group of people to define what “price” is, it is likely you will get a variety of answers. Below are definitions to help frame understanding on this issue:
Charge: The dollar amount assigned to specific medical services before negotiating any discounts from payers. The charge is different from the price. Very few patients pay the charge regardless of their insurance status; and, therefore, this data is not meaningful to people.
Price: The negotiated and contracted amount to be paid to providers by payers (also called the “allowed amount”). A patient’s out-of-pocket liability for health care services is based on this allowed amount. Note that the price for a given service varies by insurance plan as these are separately negotiated by plan/employer.
Out-of-Pocket: Portion of the price for medical services and treatment for which the patient is responsible. This includes copayments, coinsurance, and deductibles.
Cost: The definition depends on the cost being referenced: To the provider, cost is the expense incurred to provide health care to patients. To the employer, cost is the expense related to providing health benefits. To the insurance plan, cost is the price paid to the provider. To the patient, cost is the out-of-pocket fees.
We support price transparency and believe it is important for you to know what out-of-pocket costs you will incur for services provided at Mercy – North Iowa. We have established two easy ways for you to obtain estimate of your costs – call or click:
Call: By calling, we can give you an accurate estimate of your out-of-pocket costs for a medical service or procedure at Mercy – North Iowa. We will review:
- the specific service or procedure you will receive
- the physician providing the service
- your insurance, including what you have already paid towards your deductible
Call: 641-732-6121 or via email at mc43mcrmcpfs@mercyhealth.com for questions.
Sliding Fee Discount
For those who are uninsured or under-insured, MCRHC supports a sliding fee discount.
MCRHC has been recognized as a Top 100 Critical Access Hospital by the Chartis Center for Rural Health. This is the fourth time MCRHC has received this national honor.
Awarded honorees are determined by the results of iVantage Health Analytics’ Hospital Strength INDEX®. To determine the 2024 list, the Chartis Center used the Hospital Strength Index, which assesses performance in eight areas: inpatient market share, outpatient market share, quality, outcomes, patient perspective, cost, charges, and financial efficiency.
Hospitals recognized as a Top 100 facility had one of the 100 highest overall scores among all rural and community and critical access hospitals nationally. There is no application process and recognition is solely based on performance data.
MCRHC previously received Top 100 honors in 2018, 2019 and 2023.
