9/100
#2,416 nationally
Merit Health Natchez
52 Sergeant Prentiss Drive, Natchez, MS 39120 · (601) 443-2100
Among the highest charge markups in the country
For every $1 of care Medicare actually paid for here, Merit Health Natchez billed $9.06 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
- 9.1x
- volume-weighted across all its priced work
- Procedures priced
- 19
- inpatient and outpatient combined
- Rank in MS
- #30
- lower markup ranks higher
- CMS quality stars
- 2/5
- 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 9% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 8% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 8% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 19% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Sepsis (severe)
MS-DRG 871 · Inpatient stay |
114 | $136,957 | $17,723 | +110% |
|
Comprehensive Observation Services
APC 8011 · Hospital outpatient visit |
90 | $46,247 | $2,402 | +138% |
|
Level 1 Laparoscopy and Related Services
APC 5361 · Hospital outpatient visit |
43 | $61,178 | $5,185 | +74% |
|
Heart Failure (severe)
MS-DRG 291 · Inpatient stay |
38 | $111,119 | $12,114 | +156% |
|
Level 3 Vascular Procedures
APC 5183 · Hospital outpatient visit |
31 | $39,608 | $2,864 | +107% |
|
Level 2 Excision/ Biopsy/ Incision and Drainage
APC 5072 · Hospital outpatient visit |
29 | $32,050 | $1,457 | +218% |
|
Level 1 Breast/lymphatic Surgery and Related Procedures
APC 5091 · Hospital outpatient visit |
28 | $40,965 | $3,328 | +72% |
|
Pneumonia (severe)
MS-DRG 193 · Inpatient stay |
22 | $131,741 | $11,904 | +183% |
|
Kidney Failure (severe)
MS-DRG 682 · Inpatient stay |
22 | $117,580 | $14,461 | +122% |
|
Kidney Failure (with complications)
MS-DRG 683 · Inpatient stay |
18 | $68,371 | $8,084 | +107% |
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 |
$32,050 | $1,457 | +218% |
|
Pneumonia (severe)
MS-DRG 193 · Inpatient stay |
$131,741 | $11,904 | +183% |
|
Respiratory Infection (severe)
MS-DRG 177 · Inpatient stay |
$144,332 | $15,045 | +162% |
|
Heart Failure (severe)
MS-DRG 291 · Inpatient stay |
$111,119 | $12,114 | +156% |
|
Urinary Tract Infection (severe)
MS-DRG 689 · Inpatient stay |
$97,876 | $10,487 | +140% |
|
Comprehensive Observation Services
APC 8011 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$46,247 | $2,402 | +138% |
|
Kidney Failure (severe)
MS-DRG 682 · Inpatient stay |
$117,580 | $14,461 | +122% |
|
Sepsis (severe)
MS-DRG 871 · Inpatient stay |
$136,957 | $17,723 | +110% |
Where it charges least relative to everyone else
| Procedure | Charged | Actually paid | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Level 3 Pacemaker and Similar Procedures
APC 5223 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$65,742 | $9,589 | +28% |
|
Fluid and Electrolyte Disorder (severe)
MS-DRG 640 · Inpatient stay |
$83,290 | $11,916 | +72% |
|
Level 1 Breast/lymphatic Surgery and Related Procedures
APC 5091 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$40,965 | $3,328 | +72% |
|
Level 1 Laparoscopy and Related Services
APC 5361 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$61,178 | $5,185 | +74% |
|
Kidney or Urinary Disorder (severe)
MS-DRG 698 · Inpatient stay |
$103,770 | $14,853 | +83% |
|
Infection Needing Surgery (severe)
MS-DRG 853 · Inpatient stay |
$350,045 | $44,526 | +97% |
|
Sepsis (without major complications)
MS-DRG 872 · Inpatient stay |
$78,539 | $9,382 | +100% |
|
Urinary Tract Infection (without major complications)
MS-DRG 690 · Inpatient stay |
$60,394 | $7,277 | +103% |
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.