78/100
#396 nationally
Essentia Health
3000 32Nd Ave South, Fargo, ND 58104 · (701) 364-8000
Charges moderately above what care is paid for
For every $1 of care Medicare actually paid for here, Essentia Health billed $3.52 in list charges. That gap does not change a Medicare patient's bill — but it is where an uninsured or out-of-network bill starts.
- Charge-to-payment
- 3.5x
- volume-weighted across all its priced work
- Procedures priced
- 105
- inpatient and outpatient combined
- Rank in ND
- #3
- lower markup ranks higher
- CMS quality stars
- 3/5
- shown for context, not in the grade
How this grade was reached
Each component is scored against every other U.S. hospital in the same federal files, so the grade is a position in the country, not a pass mark we invented.
Better than 69% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 82% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 81% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 92% of U.S. hospitals.
What this hospital treats most
The ten procedures it billed Medicare for most often, with its charge beside the national middle.
| Procedure | Patients | Charged | Actually paid | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Level 2 Urology and Related Services
APC 5372 · Hospital outpatient visit |
405 | $2,245 | $638 | -28% |
|
Comprehensive Observation Services
APC 8011 · Hospital outpatient visit |
294 | $13,535 | $2,523 | -30% |
|
Sepsis (severe)
MS-DRG 871 · Inpatient stay |
282 | $39,116 | $14,395 | -40% |
|
Level 5 Musculoskeletal Procedures
APC 5115 · Hospital outpatient visit |
248 | $37,215 | $12,236 | -40% |
|
Level 1 Endovascular Procedures
APC 5191 · Hospital outpatient visit |
225 | $19,695 | $3,050 | -22% |
|
Level 2 Upper GI Procedures
APC 5302 · Hospital outpatient visit |
223 | $7,949 | $1,755 | -32% |
|
Level 3 Urology and Related Services
APC 5373 · Hospital outpatient visit |
210 | $5,174 | $1,898 | -60% |
|
Level 2 Excision/ Biopsy/ Incision and Drainage
APC 5072 · Hospital outpatient visit |
207 | $6,378 | $1,514 | -37% |
|
Heart Failure (severe)
MS-DRG 291 · Inpatient stay |
180 | $27,294 | $9,513 | -37% |
|
Level 1 Intraocular Procedures
APC 5491 · Hospital outpatient visit |
168 | $7,511 | $2,174 | -36% |
Where its charges run furthest above the national middle
Only procedures it performed at least eleven times, so a single unusual case cannot produce the headline.
| Procedure | Charged | Actually paid | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Level 4 Vascular Procedures
APC 5184 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$38,810 | $5,147 | +7% |
|
Level 2 Endovascular Procedures
APC 5192 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$33,549 | $5,359 | -3% |
|
Fluid and Electrolyte Disorder (without major complications)
MS-DRG 641 · Inpatient stay |
$29,111 | $5,976 | -5% |
|
Other Digestive System Operating Room Procedures with Complications
MS-DRG 357 · Inpatient stay |
$93,210 | $17,062 | -12% |
|
Red Blood Cell Disorders without Major Complications
MS-DRG 812 · Inpatient stay |
$32,270 | $6,956 | -13% |
|
Level 3 Intraocular Procedures
APC 5493 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$20,546 | $4,900 | -15% |
|
Level 1 Nerve Procedures
APC 5431 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$9,522 | $1,810 | -16% |
|
Level 5 Gynecologic Procedures
APC 5415 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$24,140 | $4,663 | -20% |
Where it charges least relative to everyone else
| Procedure | Charged | Actually paid | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Level 3 Urology and Related Services
APC 5373 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$5,174 | $1,898 | -60% |
|
Poisoning and Toxic Effects of Drugs with Major Complications
MS-DRG 917 · Inpatient stay |
$27,889 | $10,917 | -59% |
|
Extensive Operating Room Procedures Unrelated to Principal Diagnosis with Major
MS-DRG 981 · Inpatient stay |
$78,174 | $29,812 | -57% |
|
Kidney or Urinary Disorder (with complications)
MS-DRG 699 · Inpatient stay |
$16,593 | $7,733 | -56% |
|
Combined Anterior and Posterior Spinal Fusion with Complications
MS-DRG 454 · Inpatient stay |
$99,429 | $43,976 | -55% |
|
Pulmonary Embolism with Major Complications or Acute Cor Pulmonale
MS-DRG 175 · Inpatient stay |
$25,146 | $10,028 | -54% |
|
Level 4 ENT Procedures
APC 5164 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$8,849 | $3,019 | -53% |
|
Gastrointestinal Bleeding (severe)
MS-DRG 377 · Inpatient stay |
$33,699 | $13,068 | -53% |
What this page cannot tell you
- It is not your bill. These are averages across Medicare patients. What you pay depends on your insurance, your plan's negotiated rate and your own case.
- It is not a quality rating. A hospital with a high markup may be excellent, and one with a low markup may not be. We checked: across every U.S. hospital, markup and the CMS quality star rating barely move together.
- A charge is not a cost. Hospitals do not collect their list charges from insured patients. The number matters because it is the opening figure on an uninsured or out-of-network bill.
- Ask for the real number. Every U.S. hospital must publish a machine-readable price file and give you a written good-faith estimate on request.