Stress test (hospital charge) cost in Des Moines, IA
In Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA, 4 hospitals list a cash price for exercise stress test, tracing only, the hospital charge: from $154.08 to $1,365.00, with a median of $805.16. The lowest listed price is at MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center — $651.08 less than the median here. Across Iowa, the median is $698.64 at 34 hospitals.
Cash prices at 4 facilities across 3 cities for code 93017, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jan 28, 2026 and Mar 31, 2026.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center lowest Des Moines, IA · (515) 247-4436 PR Test Stress Cardiovascular Tracing Only | $154.08 | — | $27.90–$156.05 | — | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mercy Medical Center - Newton Newton, IA · (641) 792-1273 HC Test Stress Cardiovascular Tracing Only | $765.05 | $1,177.00 | $204.38–$1,177.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| UnityPoint Health - Des Moines Iowa Methodist Medical Des Moines, IA · (515) 343-1000 HC CVSLR STRESS TEST; TRACING | $845.26 | $1,056.57 | $296.45–$757.81 | 20% | Jan 28, 2026 source file |
| UnityPoint Health - Des Moines Iowa Methodist Medical Des Moines, IA · (515) 343-1000 HC CVSLR STRESS TEST; TRACING | $845.26 | $1,056.57 | $276.82–$799.71 | 20% | Jan 28, 2026 source file |
| MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center Des Moines, IA · (515) 247-4436 HC Test Stress Cardiovascular Tracing Only | $889.20 | $1,368.00 | $203.81–$1,368.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Catholic Health Initiatives-Iowa West Des Moines, IA HC Test Stress Cardiovascular Tracing Only | $1,365.00 | $1,365.00 | $203.81–$1,365.00 | — | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $154.08, median $805.16, highest $1,365.00 — a 8.9× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 4 facilities here, median $805.16. Inpatient and outpatient prices are not comparable and are kept on separate pages: the inpatient charge covers admission, not the same purchase.
Cash or insurance?
At 2 of 4 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at none is it below every plan's rate. If you have insurance but have not met your deductible, you usually pay your plan's negotiated rate, which falls somewhere in the "Insurers pay" column. Paying cash can cost less, but a cash payment usually does not count toward your deductible. Ask the hospital for both numbers before you book.
What it is
This code is the hospital's part of an exercise stress test, the treadmill test with a running EKG, without the doctor's supervision and report. Clinics bill the whole test under 93015.
What the price covers
The price covers the test and recording. The doctor's supervision and report are billed separately, and imaging such as a nuclear scan (78452) or stress echo (93351) is extra.
2 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 93017 ($818.10). Such a line is almost always a physician's fee billed separately, an assistant's share or a placeholder — a real charge, but not the price of the procedure itself.
| UnityPoint Health - Des Moines Iowa Methodist Medical Des Moines, IAPR CARDIAC STRESS TST,TRACING ONLY | $81.60 | file |
| UnityPoint Health - Des Moines Iowa Methodist Medical Des Moines, IAPR CARDIAC STRESS TST,TRACING ONLY | $81.60 | file |