Inj epidural sgl lumb-sacral without img at UPMC Altoona

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

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

$1,629.00

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.

$2,715.00

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.

$71.15 with Aetna vs $2,172.00 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 $71.15 ↓ -96%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families PA CHIP/PA Medicaid $74.71 ↓ -95%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicaid $78.27 ↓ -95%
Geisinger Medicaid $98.89 ↓ -94%
Highmark BCBS of PA Community Blue Medicare Advantage/Complete Blue Medicare Advantage/Freedom Blue Medicare Advantage/Security Blue Medicare Advantage/Together Blue Medicare Advantage $98.94 ↓ -94%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $105.52 ↓ -94%
Health Partners Plans (Jefferson Health Plan) Medicaid/CHIP $107.29 ↓ -93%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $111.07 ↓ -93%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $121.25 ↓ -93%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $200.76 ↓ -88%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicare $865.59 ↓ -47%
UPMC Health Plan Partners/Select $879.85 ↓ -46%
United Healthcare Medicare $908.19 ↓ -44%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $916.68 ↓ -44%
PA Health & Wellness Allwell Medicare Advantage DSNP/Medicare Advantage (Allwell by Wellcare) $916.68 ↓ -44%
AmeriHealth Caritas Medicare $916.68 ↓ -44%
Cigna Medicare $916.68 ↓ -44%
Cigna Commercial $1,357.50 ↓ -17%
Preferred Healthcare System PPO $1,357.50 ↓ -17%
United Healthcare Commercial $1,391.71 ↓ -15%
Aetna Commercial $1,438.95 ↓ -12%
Geisinger Commercial $1,493.25 ↓ -8%
UPMC Health Plan CHIP $1,954.74 ↑ +20%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $2,129.89 ↑ +31%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $2,172.00 ↑ +33%
Tricare East Region not published by hospital
US Family Health Plan Tricare Prime not published by hospital

Visitor-reported prices

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Inj epidural sgl lumb-sacral without img at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC East Monroeville $1,278.00 $78.27 – $1,704.00
UPMC Hamot Erie $1,980.00 $78.27 – $1,234.49
UPMC Horizon-Greenville Greenville $1,956.60 $78.27 – $916.68
UPMC Jameson New Castle $1,956.60 $78.27 – $1,145.85
UPMC Magee Pittsburgh $2,641.20 $78.27 – $916.68
UPMC Mercy Pittsburgh $1,541.40 $78.27 – $933.66
UPMC Muncy Muncy $1,260.60 $78.27 – $993.28
UPMC Passavant-McCandless Pittsburgh $1,549.80 $78.27 – $933.66

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →