DRG 281 · Cardiovascular

Heart Attack Cost in Wisconsin — Compare All Hospitals

Acute myocardial infarction (heart attack) with complications — discharged alive.

State average
$11,169
gross charge · DRG 281
Hospitals
7
with published pricing
Price range
$6,823 – $18,859
low to high
Lowest $6,823 Highest $18,859

7 Wisconsin hospitals publish gross charges for heart attack (DRG 281). Prices range from $6,823 to $18,859 — roughly $12,036 apart. The cheapest is Amery Hospital & Clinic in Amery; the most expensive is Stoughton Health in Stoughton. The state average sits at $11,169.

The number you see is each hospital's published "list price" — the gross charge for the facility component of heart attack. Insurance plans negotiate substantial discounts, Medicare and Medicaid pay fixed federal rates, and uninsured patients can usually qualify for a cash-pay discount. But the gross charge still works as a useful benchmark: a hospital that lists heart attack at twice the price of another typically negotiates higher rates with insurers too, and quotes more for uninsured patients.

If you're scheduling heart attack in Wisconsin, sort the list below by price, then click each hospital name to see its quality profile — CMS overall star rating, surgical-safety measures, readmission rates, patient-experience scores. The cheapest hospital isn't always the right call. Teaching hospitals often charge more because they take complex cases, and a higher-rated community hospital may deliver equivalent outcomes for a straightforward case at a lower price. Use the price column to narrow the field; use the quality data to make the final call.

Pricing comes from each hospital's Machine-Readable File (MRF), published under the federal Hospital Price Transparency Rule. Wisconsin hospitals missing from the list either don't perform heart attack in volume, haven't published a usable price for DRG 281 in their most recent MRF, or fell below our data-quality thresholds (we filter out clearly erroneous entries like $0 charges). The list refreshes as hospitals update their files.

What this hospital charge usually covers

The gross-charge number above is the hospital's facility bill for heart attack. Here's what's typically inside that price (typical inpatient stay: 3–5 days):

Included in the hospital bill

  • Emergency department evaluation and cardiac workup
  • Inpatient cardiac monitoring (often in a coronary care unit)
  • Diagnostic catheterization and any required stenting
  • Inpatient medications and routine labs during admission

Usually billed separately

  • Cardiologist, ED physician, and any interventional specialist professional fees
  • Ambulance transport
  • Outpatient cardiac rehab and follow-up visits after discharge
  • Long-term medications (antiplatelets, statins, beta-blockers)

Quality signals to check before picking a hospital

Price alone won't tell you which hospital does heart attack best. These are the CMS quality measures that matter most for this specific procedure. Click any hospital below for its full profile, then look for these:

Heart-Attack Mortality (30-day)

The single most important quality signal — how often patients survive 30 days after a heart attack at this hospital.

Time to Fibrinolysis (STEMI)

For ST-elevation heart attacks treated with clot-busting drugs, every minute counts. Tracks median minutes from arrival to treatment.

Heart-Attack Readmissions

Reflects discharge planning, medication reconciliation, and outpatient cardiology handoff.

When the cheapest hospital may not be the best fit

The list below sorts by price. For heart attack, the lowest price isn't automatically the best fit — these are situations where it's worth weighing additional factors against price. None of the below is medical advice; talk to your doctor about what applies to your specific situation.

Questions to ask your hospital or insurer

The gross charge is the starting point. These are the procedure-specific questions to ask before you commit:

Hospitals ranked by gross charge

  1. 1

    Amery Hospital & Clinic

    Amery, WI

    Gross charge $6,823
    Cash pay $3,558
  2. 2

    Hudson Hospital

    Hudson, WI

    Gross charge $6,823
    Cash pay $3,558
  3. 3
    Gross charge $6,823
    Cash pay $3,558
  4. 4

    Crossing Rivers Health

    Prairie Du Chien, WI

    Gross charge $10,155
  5. 5
    Gross charge $14,100
    Cash pay $8,107
  6. 6
    Gross charge $14,601
    Cash pay $9,491
  7. 7

    Stoughton Health

    Stoughton, WI

    Gross charge $18,859
    Cash pay $10,372
  8. 8

    Mayo Clinic Health System - La Crosse

    La Crosse, WI

    Gross charge
  9. 9
    Gross charge
  10. 10

    Marshfield Medical Center - Rice Lake

    Rice Lake, WI

    Gross charge
  11. 11

    Aspirus Rhinelander Hospital

    Rhinelander, WI

    Gross charge
  12. 12
    Gross charge
  13. 13

    Aurora Medical Center Sheboygan County

    Sheboygan, WI

    Gross charge
  14. 14

    Marshfield Medical Center - Marshfield

    Marshfield, WI

    Gross charge
  15. 15

    Aurora Medical Center Washington County

    Hartford, WI

    Gross charge
  16. 16
    Gross charge
  17. 17

    Aurora Medical Center Burlington

    Burlington, WI

    Gross charge
  18. 18

    Froedtert West Bend Hospital

    West Bend, WI

    Gross charge
  19. 19

    Mercy Health System Corp

    Janesville, WI

    Gross charge
  20. 20

    Fort Memorial Hospital

    Fort Atkinson, WI

    Gross charge
  21. 21

    Ascension St. Francis Hospital

    Milwaukee, WI

    Gross charge
  22. 22

    Unitypoint Health - Meriter

    Madison, WI

    Gross charge
  23. 23

    Sauk Prairie Hospital

    Prairie Du Sac, WI

    Gross charge
  24. 24
    Gross charge
  25. 25

    Aurora Lakeland Medical Center

    Elkhorn, WI

    Gross charge
  26. 26

    Froedtert Holy Family Memorial Hospital

    Manitowoc, WI

    Gross charge
  27. 27
    Gross charge
  28. 28

    Aurora Medical Center Bay Area

    Marinette, WI

    Gross charge
  29. 29

    Ascension SE Wisconsin Hospital

    Milwaukee, WI

    Gross charge
  30. 30

    Aurora St Luke's Medical Center

    Milwaukee, WI

    Gross charge
  31. 31

    Aurora West Allis Medical Center

    West Allis, WI

    Gross charge
  32. 32

    Froedtert Hospital

    Milwaukee, WI

    Gross charge
  33. 33

    Aurora Medical Center - Kenosha

    Kenosha, WI

    Gross charge
  34. 34

    Aurora Baycare Medical Center

    Green Bay, WI

    Gross charge
  35. 35
    Gross charge
  36. 36

    Aurora Medical Center Oshkosh

    Oshkosh, WI

    Gross charge
  37. 37

    Marshfield Medical Center-Weston

    Weston, WI

    Gross charge
  38. 38
    Gross charge
  39. 39

    Aurora Medical Center Summit

    Summit, WI

    Gross charge
  40. 40

    Aurora Medical Center Grafton

    Grafton, WI

    Gross charge
  41. 41

    Marshfield Medical Center - Eau Claire

    Eau Claire, WI

    Gross charge
  42. 42
    Gross charge
  43. 43
    Gross charge
  44. 44
    Gross charge
  45. 45
    Gross charge
  46. 46
    Gross charge
  47. 47
    Gross charge
  48. 48
    Gross charge
  49. 49
    Gross charge
  50. 50

    Flambeau Hospital

    Park Falls, WI

    Gross charge
  51. 51
    Gross charge
  52. 52
    Gross charge
  53. 53

    Richland Hospital

    Richland Center, WI

    Gross charge
  54. 54
    Gross charge
  55. 55

    Upland Hills Health Hospital & Clinics

    Dodgeville, WI

    Gross charge
  56. 56

    Southwest Health Center

    Platteville, WI

    Gross charge

Compare heart attack pricing in nearby states