Ghs musc test done w/n test comp at UPMC Altoona

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

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

$278.40

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.

$464.00

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.

$29.39 with Aetna vs $371.20 with Private Health Care Systems — 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 $29.39 ↓ -89%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families PA CHIP/PA Medicaid $30.86 ↓ -89%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicaid $32.33 ↓ -88%
Geisinger Medicaid $40.85 ↓ -85%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $43.59 ↓ -84%
Health Partners Plans (Jefferson Health Plan) Medicaid/CHIP $44.32 ↓ -84%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $45.88 ↓ -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 $46.79 ↓ -83%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $50.09 ↓ -82%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $54.17 ↓ -81%
UPMC Health Plan CHIP $153.44 ↓ -45%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $167.19 ↓ -40%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $232.00 ↓ -17%
Preferred Healthcare System PPO $232.00 ↓ -17%
Cigna Commercial $232.00 ↓ -17%
United Healthcare Commercial $237.85 ↓ -15%
Aetna Commercial $245.92 ↓ -12%
Geisinger Commercial $255.20 ↓ -8%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $371.20 ↑ +33%

Visitor-reported prices

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Ghs musc test done w/n test comp at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC Bedford Everett $254.40 $69.60 – $381.60
UPMC Cole Coudersport $104.40 $21.62 – $122.20
UPMC East Monroeville $312.00 $47.23 – $416.00
UPMC Northwest Seneca $274.80 $72.92 – $122.20
UPMC Hanover Hanover $349.80 $38.50 – $319.00
UPMC Horizon-Greenville Greenville $259.20 $69.60 – $122.20
UPMC Jameson New Castle $357.60 $33.80 – $122.20
UPMC Magee Pittsburgh $310.20 $47.23 – $122.20

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →