79/100
#384 nationally
Samaritan Medical Center
830 Washington Street, Watertown, NY 13601 · (315) 785-4000
Charges moderately above what care is paid for
For every $1 of care Medicare actually paid for here, Samaritan Medical Center billed $2.70 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
- 56
- inpatient and outpatient combined
- Rank in NY
- #46
- 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 84% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 88% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 75% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 56% 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 1 Intraocular Procedures
APC 5491 · Hospital outpatient visit |
323 | $15,047 | $2,633 | +28% |
|
Level 2 Urology and Related Services
APC 5372 · Hospital outpatient visit |
257 | $1,301 | $776 | -59% |
|
Comprehensive Observation Services
APC 8011 · Hospital outpatient visit |
210 | $21,301 | $3,108 | +10% |
|
Level 2 Excision/ Biopsy/ Incision and Drainage
APC 5072 · Hospital outpatient visit |
157 | $3,508 | $1,841 | -65% |
|
Sepsis (severe)
MS-DRG 871 · Inpatient stay |
141 | $49,634 | $22,810 | -24% |
|
Level 3 Urology and Related Services
APC 5373 · Hospital outpatient visit |
116 | $3,143 | $2,313 | -76% |
|
Level 2 Upper GI Procedures
APC 5302 · Hospital outpatient visit |
74 | $5,671 | $2,160 | -52% |
|
Level 4 Urology and Related Services
APC 5374 · Hospital outpatient visit |
64 | $10,390 | $3,866 | -50% |
|
Level 1 Laparoscopy and Related Services
APC 5361 · Hospital outpatient visit |
63 | $19,041 | $6,552 | -46% |
|
Heart Failure (severe)
MS-DRG 291 · Inpatient stay |
60 | $40,021 | $15,413 | -8% |
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 1 Intraocular Procedures
APC 5491 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$15,047 | $2,633 | +28% |
|
Comprehensive Observation Services
APC 8011 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$21,301 | $3,108 | +10% |
|
Stroke (with complications)
MS-DRG 065 · Inpatient stay |
$47,027 | $11,765 | +3% |
|
Pneumonia (with complications)
MS-DRG 194 · Inpatient stay |
$31,641 | $9,597 | about average |
|
Kidney Failure (with complications)
MS-DRG 683 · Inpatient stay |
$32,547 | $9,816 | about average |
|
Fluid and Electrolyte Disorder (severe)
MS-DRG 640 · Inpatient stay |
$47,552 | $14,420 | about average |
|
Stroke (uncomplicated)
MS-DRG 066 · Inpatient stay |
$34,179 | $8,079 | -5% |
|
Fluid and Electrolyte Disorder (without major complications)
MS-DRG 641 · Inpatient stay |
$28,837 | $9,147 | -6% |
Where it charges least relative to everyone else
| Procedure | Charged | Actually paid | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Level 3 Vascular Procedures
APC 5183 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$3,798 | $3,620 | -80% |
|
Level 3 Urology and Related Services
APC 5373 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$3,143 | $2,313 | -76% |
|
Level 2 Vascular Procedures
APC 5182 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$2,119 | $1,819 | -75% |
|
Level 2 Excision/ Biopsy/ Incision and Drainage
APC 5072 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$3,508 | $1,841 | -65% |
|
Level 3 Excision/ Biopsy/ Incision and Drainage
APC 5073 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$6,275 | $3,227 | -65% |
|
Level 2 Urology and Related Services
APC 5372 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$1,301 | $776 | -59% |
|
Coagulation Disorders
MS-DRG 813 · Inpatient stay |
$31,927 | $18,035 | -52% |
|
Level 2 Upper GI Procedures
APC 5302 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$5,671 | $2,160 | -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.