The Same Scan, a Very Different Price: How Cash-Pay Imaging Keeps It Simple
Here is something that surprises a lot of patients: the exact same imaging study can carry very different prices depending on where it is done. Same machine, same body part, same kind of picture, and yet the cost of getting it can look nothing alike from one setting to the next. That uncertainty is stressful, and for people paying out of pocket it can be reason enough to put off a study they actually need. We think it should be simpler than that.
Why the same study can cost so differently
The price of a scan is shaped by the setting it happens in, not just the scan itself. A hospital imaging department carries a different cost structure than a standalone clinic or a mobile visit. Facility fees, billing layers, and the way a study is coded can all move the number around. The result is that two people can get the same study and walk away with very different bills. We are speaking generally here, because the specifics vary case by case, but the pattern is real and it catches people off guard.
What cash pay changes
Cash pay is accepted at Big Sky, and it is a deliberately clean way to handle imaging. You know you are dealing directly with the people providing the service, without a chain of billing steps in between. That directness is especially helpful for self-pay patients and for rural patients who want to know what they are getting into before they commit. It takes a process that often feels opaque and makes it feel like a normal transaction.
So here are the actual numbers
Writing about price transparency without publishing a price is a bit rich, so: our 2026 ultrasound price list is on this site, all 43 studies, by CPT code. A few of the common ones:
- Abdomen, complete (76700) — $377.31
- Pelvic (76856) — $338.27
- Thyroid and soft tissue neck (76536) — $357.80
- Lower extremity veins, bilateral, for suspected DVT (93970) — $611.50
- Carotid duplex, bilateral (93880) — $631.02
- Transthoracic echocardiogram (93306) — $650.53
Every one of those includes the radiologist's reading fee. That is the part worth checking anywhere you get a quote, because a scan price and a scan-plus-read price are different numbers and only one of them is what you actually pay.
We accept Medicare and Medicaid too
Cash pay is not the only door. Medicare and Medicaid are accepted as well, so patients who are covered through those programs can use them. The goal is not to steer anyone one way or another. It is to give patients and providers a couple of straightforward paths and let the situation decide which one fits. If you are unsure what applies to a particular patient, a quick call is the fastest way to sort it out.
Predictable and simple, especially out here
Across Montana and Wyoming, a lot of the people we serve live far from a hospital and value knowing what to expect. Predictability matters. When the money side is simple and direct, patients are more likely to follow through on a study their provider ordered instead of delaying it out of worry over the bill. That is better for the patient and better for the care plan. Getting the imaging done is the whole point, and cost confusion should not be the thing that stands in the way.
How it fits with ordering
None of this changes the basics of how imaging is ordered. A provider's order is always required, and once it is in, our team schedules the visit and dispatches a technician in your region, or sees the patient at one of our regional clinics. For X-ray and EKG, same-day service is the standard in covered markets, and reads come back from our partner Rapid Radiology quickly, with most X-ray reads returned the same day. If you or your patient wants to understand the cash-pay option before scheduling, reach out and we will walk you through it.