85/100
#188 nationally
Highlands Medical Center
380 Woods Cove Road, Scottsboro, AL 35768 · (256) 259-4444
Charges close to what care is actually paid for
For every $1 of care Medicare actually paid for here, Highlands Medical Center billed $2.67 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
- 2.7x
- volume-weighted across all its priced work
- Procedures priced
- 21
- inpatient and outpatient combined
- Rank in AL
- #6
- 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 88% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 81% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 87% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 81% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Comprehensive Observation Services
APC 8011 · Hospital outpatient visit |
110 | $9,610 | $2,440 | -51% |
|
Sepsis (severe)
MS-DRG 871 · Inpatient stay |
35 | $29,302 | $13,860 | -55% |
|
Level 1 Intraocular Procedures
APC 5491 · Hospital outpatient visit |
32 | $6,275 | $2,134 | -47% |
|
Urinary Tract Infection (without major complications)
MS-DRG 690 · Inpatient stay |
29 | $14,224 | $6,940 | -52% |
|
Level 1 Nerve Procedures
APC 5431 · Hospital outpatient visit |
27 | $7,945 | $1,768 | -30% |
|
Level 4 Urology and Related Services
APC 5374 · Hospital outpatient visit |
23 | $18,196 | $3,192 | -12% |
|
Respiratory Infection (severe)
MS-DRG 177 · Inpatient stay |
22 | $26,366 | $13,298 | -52% |
|
Urinary Tract Infection (severe)
MS-DRG 689 · Inpatient stay |
21 | $17,159 | $9,321 | -58% |
|
Pneumonia (severe)
MS-DRG 193 · Inpatient stay |
20 | $18,252 | $10,403 | -61% |
|
Digestive Disorder (without major complications)
MS-DRG 392 · Inpatient stay |
18 | $13,867 | $6,751 | -57% |
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 2 Excision/ Biopsy/ Incision and Drainage
APC 5072 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$9,334 | $1,485 | -7% |
|
Level 4 Urology and Related Services
APC 5374 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$18,196 | $3,192 | -12% |
|
Level 3 Vascular Procedures
APC 5183 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$15,003 | $2,919 | -21% |
|
Level 2 Vascular Procedures
APC 5182 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$6,230 | $1,369 | -27% |
|
Level 5 Urology and Related Services
APC 5375 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$19,363 | $4,738 | -30% |
|
Level 1 Nerve Procedures
APC 5431 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$7,945 | $1,768 | -30% |
|
Level 4 Musculoskeletal Procedures
APC 5114 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$23,441 | $6,261 | -41% |
|
Level 2 Musculoskeletal Procedures
APC 5112 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$6,534 | $1,472 | -42% |
Where it charges least relative to everyone else
| Procedure | Charged | Actually paid | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Kidney Failure (with complications)
MS-DRG 683 · Inpatient stay |
$12,799 | $7,503 | -61% |
|
Pneumonia (severe)
MS-DRG 193 · Inpatient stay |
$18,252 | $10,403 | -61% |
|
Urinary Tract Infection (severe)
MS-DRG 689 · Inpatient stay |
$17,159 | $9,321 | -58% |
|
Digestive Disorder (without major complications)
MS-DRG 392 · Inpatient stay |
$13,867 | $6,751 | -57% |
|
Sepsis (severe)
MS-DRG 871 · Inpatient stay |
$29,302 | $13,860 | -55% |
|
Heart Failure (severe)
MS-DRG 291 · Inpatient stay |
$20,355 | $10,058 | -53% |
|
Urinary Tract Infection (without major complications)
MS-DRG 690 · Inpatient stay |
$14,224 | $6,940 | -52% |
|
Respiratory Infection (severe)
MS-DRG 177 · Inpatient stay |
$26,366 | $13,298 | -52% |
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.