Treatment inhalation continuous aerosol medication acute airway obstruction 1st hour at UPMC Altoona

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

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

$110.40

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.

$184.00

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.

$25.70 with Aetna vs $147.20 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 $25.70 ↓ -77%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families PA CHIP/PA Medicaid $26.98 ↓ -76%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicaid $28.27 ↓ -74%
Geisinger Medicaid $35.72 ↓ -68%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $38.11 ↓ -65%
Health Partners Plans (Jefferson Health Plan) Medicaid/CHIP $38.76 ↓ -65%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $40.12 ↓ -64%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $43.80 ↓ -60%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $51.26 ↓ -54%
Highmark BCBS of PA Community Blue Medicare Advantage/Complete Blue Medicare Advantage/Freedom Blue Medicare Advantage/Security Blue Medicare Advantage/Together Blue Medicare Advantage $59.70 ↓ -46%
Cigna Commercial $92.00 ↓ -17%
Preferred Healthcare System PPO $92.00 ↓ -17%
United Healthcare Commercial $94.32 ↓ -15%
Aetna Commercial $97.52 ↓ -12%
UPMC Health Plan CHIP $98.00 ↓ -11%
Geisinger Commercial $101.20 ↓ -8%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $106.78 ↓ -3%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicare $125.32 ↑ +14%
UPMC Health Plan Partners/Select $127.39 ↑ +15%
United Healthcare Medicare $131.49 ↑ +19%
AmeriHealth Caritas Medicare $132.72 ↑ +20%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $132.72 ↑ +20%
PA Health & Wellness Allwell Medicare Advantage DSNP/Medicare Advantage (Allwell by Wellcare) $132.72 ↑ +20%
Cigna Medicare $132.72 ↑ +20%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $147.20 ↑ +33%
US Family Health Plan Tricare Prime not published by hospital
Tricare East Region not published by hospital

Visitor-reported prices

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Treatment inhalation continuous aerosol medication acute airway obstruction 1st hour at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC Bedford Everett $133.20 $26.98 – $199.80
UPMC Carlisle Carlisle $273.00 $32.64 – $386.75
UPMC Cole Coudersport $133.20 $26.98 – $177.60
UPMC Community Osteopathic Harrisburg $273.00 $32.64 – $220.15
UPMC East Monroeville $307.20 $28.27 – $409.60
UPMC Hamot Erie $139.80 $28.27 – $161.87
UPMC Northwest Seneca $171.60 $28.27 – $129.03
UPMC Hanover Hanover $273.00 $32.64 – $197.02

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →