Mississippi / Merit Health River Oaks
CMS certification 250138 · Flowood, MS · 3 entries in CMS's price-transparency list
Merit Health River Oaks: charges and Medicare payments
Merit Health River Oaks reported 726 Medicare inpatient stays across 29 DRGs in 2024. Across them it charged 14.66 times what it was paid — among the higher ratios in Mississippi, number 1 of 37 hospitals with at least 100 stays (state median 3.49×, national 4.15×). Its most frequent stay was DRG 470, Major Hip and Knee Joint Replacement or Reattachment of Lower Extremity without MCC: 106 stays at an average charge of $246,386, 164% above the national average. It also billed 1,314 outpatient services, charging 21.05 times what Medicare paid.
- 1Medicare inpatient stays 726
- 2Charge ÷ paid, inpatient 14.66×
- 3Rank in MS (highest ratio = 1) 1 of 37
- 4CMS price-transparency actions 3
Inpatient stays
For the 29 DRGs that can be compared with the national average, Merit Health River Oaks charged more than the national average in 29 (100%). Payments follow Medicare's rates, so they usually vary far less than charges.
| DRG | Stays | Avg charge | vs US | Avg paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 470 Major Hip and Knee Joint Replacement or Reattachment of... | 106 | $246,386 | +164% | $12,864 |
| 871 Septicemia or Severe Sepsis without MV >96 Hours with MCC | 97 | $161,107 | +78% | $12,099 |
| 321 Percutaneous Cardiovascular Procedures with Intraluminal... | 33 | $288,290 | +76% | $18,702 |
| 522 Hip Replacement with Principal Diagnosis of Hip Fracture... | 30 | $228,725 | +124% | $13,994 |
| 468 Revision of Hip or Knee Replacement without CC/MCC | 29 | $324,231 | +162% | $17,967 |
| 193 Simple Pneumonia and Pleurisy with MCC | 27 | $118,686 | +99% | $8,783 |
| 392 Esophagitis, Gastroenteritis and Miscellaneous Digestive... | 25 | $82,249 | +105% | $5,831 |
| 455 Combined Anterior and Posterior Spinal Fusion without CC/MCC | 24 | $385,717 | +90% | $32,157 |
| 280 Acute Myocardial Infarction, Discharged Alive with MCC | 23 | $110,186 | +45% | $11,260 |
| 322 Percutaneous Cardiovascular Procedures with Intraluminal... | 23 | $202,056 | +76% | $12,193 |
| 378 Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage with CC | 23 | $88,921 | +83% | $6,991 |
| 274 Percutaneous and Other Intracardiac Procedures without MCC | 21 | $288,176 | +84% | $21,112 |
| 481 Hip and Femur Procedures except Major Joint with CC | 21 | $225,558 | +124% | $13,784 |
| 291 Heart Failure and Shock with MCC | 20 | $100,435 | +78% | $8,767 |
| 467 Revision of Hip or Knee Replacement with CC | 20 | $359,219 | +128% | $19,815 |
| 177 Respiratory Infections and Inflammations with MCC | 18 | $155,324 | +120% | $11,312 |
| 683 Renal Failure with CC | 18 | $90,251 | +122% | $6,421 |
| 853 Infectious and Parasitic Diseases with O.R. Procedures with... | 18 | $539,953 | +136% | $40,920 |
| 460 Spinal Fusion except Cervical without MCC | 17 | $286,728 | +68% | $28,008 |
| 472 Cervical Spinal Fusion with CC | 16 | $273,726 | +91% | $19,392 |
| 872 Septicemia or Severe Sepsis without MV >96 Hours without MCC | 16 | $95,012 | +94% | $7,412 |
| 682 Renal Failure with MCC | 15 | $121,463 | +84% | $10,198 |
| 194 Simple Pneumonia and Pleurisy with CC | 13 | $82,524 | +115% | $6,099 |
| 281 Acute Myocardial Infarction, Discharged Alive with CC | 13 | $99,805 | +98% | $6,749 |
| 473 Cervical Spinal Fusion without CC/MCC | 13 | $251,929 | +119% | $17,754 |
| 482 Hip and Femur Procedures except Major Joint without CC/MCC | 13 | $142,849 | +83% | $10,372 |
| 690 Kidney and Urinary Tract Infections without MCC | 12 | $64,261 | +70% | $5,914 |
| 377 Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage with MCC | 11 | $139,609 | +63% | $12,114 |
| 483 Major Joint or Limb Reattachment Procedures of Upper... | 11 | $271,786 | +115% | $16,521 |
Outpatient services
Against the Mississippi average
For Major Hip and Knee Joint Replacement or Reattachment of Lower Extremity without MCC (DRG 470), Merit Health River Oaks charged $246,386 on average, 158% more than the Mississippi average of $95,525, and was paid $12,864 against a state average of $13,562. For Septicemia or Severe Sepsis without MV >96 Hours with MCC (DRG 871), Merit Health River Oaks charged $161,107 on average, 150% more than the Mississippi average of $64,437, and was paid $12,099 against a state average of $14,187. For Percutaneous Cardiovascular Procedures with Intraluminal Device with MCC or 4+ Arteries/ (DRG 321), Merit Health River Oaks charged $288,290 on average, 81% more than the Mississippi average of $159,088, and was paid $18,702 against a state average of $21,056. For Hip Replacement with Principal Diagnosis of Hip Fracture without MCC (DRG 522), Merit Health River Oaks charged $228,725 on average, 208% more than the Mississippi average of $74,382, and was paid $13,994 against a state average of $14,927. For Level 2 Upper GI Procedures (outpatient APC 5302), its average charge of $28,711 was 87% above the state average of $15,381. For Level 6 Musculoskeletal Procedures (outpatient APC 5116), its average charge of $271,930 was 132% above the state average of $117,295. For Level 5 Musculoskeletal Procedures (outpatient APC 5115), its average charge of $212,181 was 235% above the state average of $63,410. For Level 4 Musculoskeletal Procedures (outpatient APC 5114), its average charge of $141,959 was 256% above the state average of $39,926.
Price-transparency record
CMS's enforcement list records these actions for a hospital named Merit Health River Oaks in Flowood, MS, under the federal hospital price-transparency rule (45 CFR part 180), which requires hospitals to post their standard charges online:
- Met Requirements — 2023-02-07 (CMS case 1234)
- Warning Notice — 2025-04-22 (CMS case 3932)
- Closure Notice — 2025-07-24 (CMS case 3932)
A warning notice or corrective-action request is not a finding of wrongdoing; "Met Requirements" and closure notices record that CMS's review ended. Matched to this hospital by exact name, city and state.
Charges are the hospital's list prices averaged over its 2024 Medicare cases; payments are what those cases actually brought in. Neither is what you will pay. For a planned procedure, ask the hospital for its price estimate or, if you are uninsured or self-paying, a good-faith estimate.
Sources: CMS Medicare Inpatient Hospitals — by Provider and Service / by Geography and Service, data year 2024; CMS Medicare Outpatient Hospitals — by Provider and Service / by Geography and Service, data year 2024; CMS Hospital Price Transparency Enforcement Activities and Outcomes, July 2026. Checked 2026-10-24. Methodology.