Cath council tip 16fr 5cc at UPMC Altoona

620 Howard Avenue, Altoona, PA · UPMC · · NPI 112418570

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published unknown · Ingested Aug 12, 2026

$40.80

Cash price

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Discounted cash price

What a hospital charges a self-pay patient who pays directly, without going through insurance — usually well below the gross charge.

Example: A CT scan has a $3,200 gross charge but an $850 discounted cash price. Ask for it by name when scheduling — hospitals don't always advertise it up front.

Full explanation →

What you pay up front if you don't use insurance.

$68.00

Gross charge

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Gross charge (chargemaster price)

The hospital's full, undiscounted list price — pulled from its internal "chargemaster" price list. Almost no one actually pays this.

Example: A chest X-ray has a gross charge of $1,450. The same hospital's discounted cash price for the same X-ray is $180 — the gross charge mostly anchors negotiations, not what patients pay.

Full explanation →

The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.

$2.47 with Health Partners Plans (Jefferson Health Plan) vs $82.98 with UPMC Health Plan — same scan, same building. Share

Negotiated rates by payer
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Negotiated rate

The price a specific insurance plan agreed to pay the hospital for a service — it varies by insurer, and even by plan within the same insurer.

Example: The same knee MRI has a negotiated rate of $904 with one insurer's PPO plan and $1,509 with another's — identical hospital, identical scan.

Full explanation →

Payer
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Payer

The insurance company footing the bill — Aetna, UnitedHealthcare, Medicare, and so on.

Example: "Blue Cross Blue Shield" is the payer. Its negotiated rate for an MRI might be $904, while a different payer's negotiated rate for the same scan is $1,509.

Full explanation →
Plan
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Plan

The specific product an insurer sells — e.g. "Blue Cross PPO 500" — which sets your deductible, coinsurance and negotiated rates.

Example: Two people both insured by Aetna can owe very different amounts for the same MRI: $50 with an HMO plan's flat copay, or the full $1,200 toward a high-deductible PPO plan's unmet deductible.

Full explanation →
Negotiated rate vs. cash
Health Partners Plans (Jefferson Health Plan) Medicaid/CHIP $2.47 ↓ -94%
Cigna Commercial $4.00 ↓ -90%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $4.00 ↓ -90%
Preferred Healthcare System PPO $4.00 ↓ -90%
Aetna Commercial $4.24 ↓ -90%
Geisinger Medicaid $4.29 ↓ -89%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $4.29 ↓ -89%
Geisinger Commercial $4.40 ↓ -89%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $4.40 ↓ -89%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $5.07 ↓ -88%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $6.40 ↓ -84%
Highmark BCBS of PA Community Blue Medicare Advantage/Complete Blue Medicare Advantage/Freedom Blue Medicare Advantage/Security Blue Medicare Advantage/Together Blue Medicare Advantage $22.25 ↓ -45%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $31.77 ↓ -22%
UPMC Health Plan CHIP $76.16 ↑ +87%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $82.98 ↑ +103%

Visitor-reported prices

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Cath council tip 16fr 5cc at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC Bedford Everett $27.00 $2.85 – $76.16
UPMC East Monroeville $138.60 $2.00 – $76.16
UPMC Northwest Seneca $130.20 $31.77 – $92.16
UPMC Horizon-Greenville Greenville $75.00 $31.77 – $76.16
UPMC Jameson New Castle $75.00 $11.66 – $76.16
UPMC Kane Kane $9.00 $31.77 – $78.12
UPMC Magee Pittsburgh $155.40 $12.83 – $76.16
UPMC McKeesport Mckeesport $63.60 $12.83 – $76.16

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →