Counseling smoke cess interm >10mins at UPMC Altoona

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

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

$48.00

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.

$80.00

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.

$19.33 with Aetna vs $70.23 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
Aetna Medicaid $19.33 ↓ -60%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families PA CHIP/PA Medicaid $20.30 ↓ -58%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicaid $21.26 ↓ -56%
Geisinger Medicaid $26.87 ↓ -44%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $28.67 ↓ -40%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicare $28.96 ↓ -40%
Health Partners Plans (Jefferson Health Plan) Medicaid/CHIP $29.15 ↓ -39%
UPMC Health Plan Partners/Select $29.44 ↓ -39%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $30.18 ↓ -37%
United Healthcare Medicare $30.39 ↓ -37%
PA Health & Wellness Allwell Medicare Advantage DSNP/Medicare Advantage (Allwell by Wellcare) $30.67 ↓ -36%
Cigna Medicare $30.67 ↓ -36%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $30.67 ↓ -36%
AmeriHealth Caritas Medicare $30.67 ↓ -36%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $32.94 ↓ -31%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $37.93 ↓ -21%
Preferred Healthcare System PPO $40.00 ↓ -17%
Cigna Commercial $40.00 ↓ -17%
United Healthcare Commercial $41.01 ↓ -15%
Aetna Commercial $42.40 ↓ -12%
Highmark BCBS of PA Community Blue Medicare Advantage/Complete Blue Medicare Advantage/Freedom Blue Medicare Advantage/Security Blue Medicare Advantage/Together Blue Medicare Advantage $43.46 ↓ -9%
Geisinger Commercial $44.00 ↓ -8%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $64.00 ↑ +33%
UPMC Health Plan CHIP $64.46 ↑ +34%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $70.23 ↑ +46%
Tricare East Region not published by hospital
US Family Health Plan Tricare Prime not published by hospital

Visitor-reported prices

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Counseling smoke cess interm >10mins at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC Bedford Everett $48.00 $10.25 – $72.00
UPMC Carlisle Carlisle $52.20 $11.92 – $73.95
UPMC Cole Coudersport $84.60 $20.30 – $112.80
UPMC Community Osteopathic Harrisburg $52.20 $17.40 – $73.95
UPMC Hamot Erie $48.00 $21.26 – $43.46
UPMC Northwest Seneca $48.00 $21.26 – $37.93
UPMC Hanover Hanover $52.20 $24.55 – $45.54
UPMC Horizon-Greenville Greenville $48.00 $21.26 – $53.29

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →