Remove renal tube w/fluoro at UPMC Altoona

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

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

$1,950.00

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.

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

$3,250.00

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.

$648.95 with UPMC Health Plan vs $3,087.51 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
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicare $648.95 ↓ -67%
UPMC Health Plan Partners/Select $659.64 ↓ -66%
United Healthcare Medicare $680.89 ↓ -65%
AmeriHealth Caritas Medicare $687.26 ↓ -65%
Cigna Medicare $687.26 ↓ -65%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $687.26 ↓ -65%
PA Health & Wellness Allwell Medicare Advantage DSNP/Medicare Advantage (Allwell by Wellcare) $687.26 ↓ -65%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $806.66 ↓ -59%
Highmark BCBS of PA Community Blue Medicare Advantage/Complete Blue Medicare Advantage/Freedom Blue Medicare Advantage/Security Blue Medicare Advantage/Together Blue Medicare Advantage $893.51 ↓ -54%
Cigna Commercial $1,625.00 ↓ -17%
Preferred Healthcare System PPO $1,625.00 ↓ -17%
United Healthcare Commercial $1,665.95 ↓ -15%
Aetna Commercial $1,722.50 ↓ -12%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $1,787.50 ↓ -8%
Geisinger Commercial $1,787.50 ↓ -8%
Geisinger Medicaid $1,787.50 ↓ -8%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $2,600.00 ↑ +33%
UPMC Health Plan CHIP $2,833.60 ↑ +45%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $3,087.51 ↑ +58%
US Family Health Plan Tricare Prime not published by hospital
Tricare East Region not published by hospital

Visitor-reported prices

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Remove renal tube w/fluoro at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC Carlisle Carlisle $3,200.40 $351.19 – $4,533.90
UPMC Cole Coudersport $82.20 $37.98 – $806.66
UPMC Community Osteopathic Harrisburg $3,200.40 $650.01 – $4,533.90
UPMC East Monroeville $3,741.60 $638.07 – $4,988.80
UPMC Hamot Erie $1,914.60 $734.43 – $925.53
UPMC Northwest Seneca $1,830.00 $577.11 – $806.66
UPMC Hanover Hanover $3,200.40 $631.25 – $2,833.60
UPMC Lititz Lititz $3,200.40 $634.67 – $2,833.60

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →