42/100
#1,541 nationally
University Of Iowa Health Care Medical Center Down
500 E Market Street, Iowa City, IA 52245 · (319) 339-0300
Charges well above the national norm
For every $1 of care Medicare actually paid for here, University Of Iowa Health Care Medical Center Down billed $5.50 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
- 5.5x
- volume-weighted across all its priced work
- Procedures priced
- 59
- inpatient and outpatient combined
- Rank in IA
- #26
- lower markup ranks higher
- CMS quality stars
- 4/5
- 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 26% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 58% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 45% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 46% 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 5 Musculoskeletal Procedures
APC 5115 · Hospital outpatient visit |
683 | $52,045 | $11,613 | -17% |
|
Comprehensive Observation Services
APC 8011 · Hospital outpatient visit |
420 | $27,932 | $2,422 | +44% |
|
Sepsis (severe)
MS-DRG 871 · Inpatient stay |
156 | $65,768 | $13,619 | about average |
|
Heart Failure (severe)
MS-DRG 291 · Inpatient stay |
97 | $50,305 | $8,643 | +16% |
|
Level 6 Musculoskeletal Procedures
APC 5116 · Hospital outpatient visit |
97 | $83,248 | $16,443 | about average |
|
Level 2 Urology and Related Services
APC 5372 · Hospital outpatient visit |
79 | $2,084 | $610 | -34% |
|
Level 1 Laparoscopy and Related Services
APC 5361 · Hospital outpatient visit |
73 | $38,107 | $5,042 | +9% |
|
Level 1 Endovascular Procedures
APC 5191 · Hospital outpatient visit |
70 | $22,105 | $2,883 | -12% |
|
Pneumonia (severe)
MS-DRG 193 · Inpatient stay |
56 | $54,708 | $9,066 | +17% |
|
Level 2 Excision/ Biopsy/ Incision and Drainage
APC 5072 · Hospital outpatient visit |
53 | $11,399 | $1,447 | +13% |
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 Vascular Procedures
APC 5182 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$20,381 | $1,389 | +138% |
|
Urinary Tract Infection (severe)
MS-DRG 689 · Inpatient stay |
$64,660 | $8,095 | +59% |
|
Comprehensive Observation Services
APC 8011 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$27,932 | $2,422 | +44% |
|
Skin Infection (without major complications)
MS-DRG 603 · Inpatient stay |
$43,524 | $5,945 | +43% |
|
Kidney Failure (severe)
MS-DRG 682 · Inpatient stay |
$66,820 | $10,425 | +26% |
|
Level 2 Upper GI Procedures
APC 5302 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$14,655 | $1,698 | +25% |
|
Gastrointestinal Obstruction without Complications/mcc
MS-DRG 390 · Inpatient stay |
$29,885 | $3,823 | +25% |
|
COPD (severe)
MS-DRG 190 · Inpatient stay |
$50,610 | $7,394 | +21% |
Where it charges least relative to everyone else
| Procedure | Charged | Actually paid | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Combined Anterior and Posterior Spinal Fusion without Complications/mcc
MS-DRG 455 · Inpatient stay |
$113,371 | $30,103 | -36% |
|
Heart Catheter Procedure (severe)
MS-DRG 321 · Inpatient stay |
$94,890 | $18,808 | -34% |
|
Level 2 Urology and Related Services
APC 5372 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$2,084 | $610 | -34% |
|
Level 4 Endovascular Procedures
APC 5194 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$70,535 | $9,003 | -26% |
|
Level 3 Urology and Related Services
APC 5373 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$9,664 | $1,705 | -25% |
|
Infection Needing Surgery (severe)
MS-DRG 853 · Inpatient stay |
$134,343 | $32,675 | -25% |
|
Heart Catheter Procedure (without major complications)
MS-DRG 322 · Inpatient stay |
$80,821 | $12,006 | -21% |
|
Fractures of Hip and Pelvis without Major Complications
MS-DRG 536 · Inpatient stay |
$26,054 | $5,373 | -21% |
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.