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Neck (Cervical Spine) MRI (with contrast) at UPMC Hamot

201 State Street, Erie, PA · UPMC · · NPI 1487647590

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Mar 6, 2026 · Ingested Aug 13, 2026

$1,455.60

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.

$2,426.00

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.

$220.65 with BCBS of Western NY vs $3,335.99 with Highmark BCBS of PA — 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
BCBS of Western NY Commercial $220.65 ↓ -85%
Univera Univera_Medicare_Hamot_2024 $363.90 ↓ -75%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicaid $372.90 ↓ -74%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families PA CHIP/PA Medicaid $389.85 ↓ -73%
Fidelis Medicare $392.96 ↓ -73%
Aetna Medicare $400.82 ↓ -72%
UPMC Health Plan Partners/Select $401.13 ↓ -72%
Wellcare Medicare Advantage $404.75 ↓ -72%
Aetna Medicaid $406.80 ↓ -72%
BCBS of Western NY Medicare Advantage $412.61 ↓ -72%
United Healthcare Medicare $420.47 ↓ -71%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $424.36 ↓ -71%
AmeriHealth Caritas Medicare $424.40 ↓ -71%
Cigna Medicare $424.40 ↓ -71%
PA Health & Wellness Allwell Medicare Advantage DSNP/Medicare Advantage (Allwell by Wellcare) $424.40 ↓ -71%
Geisinger Medicaid/CHIP $471.18 ↓ -68%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $502.74 ↓ -65%
Health Partners Plans (Jefferson Health Plan) Medicaid/CHIP $511.21 ↓ -65%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $529.21 ↓ -64%
Independent Health Medicare Advantage $566.90 ↓ -61%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $577.72 ↓ -60%
Aetna Commercial $606.50 ↓ -58%
Highmark BCBS of PA Complete Blue Medicare Advantage/Freedom Blue Medicare Advantage/Security Blue Medicare Advantage $690.01 ↓ -53%
Cigna NBR ASO/FI $727.80 ↓ -50%
Cigna New Business ASO $727.80 ↓ -50%
Independent Health Commercial $755.01 ↓ -48%
Univera Commercial $800.58 ↓ -45%
Cigna EBR $970.40 ↓ -33%
Cigna Commercial $970.40 ↓ -33%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $1,084.84 ↓ -25%
United Healthcare Commercial $1,478.00 ↑ +2%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $1,498.17 ↑ +3%
InterGroup Health Coalition Partners/PPO $1,576.90 ↑ +8%
Aetna AXA/MMO $1,698.20 ↑ +17%
Multiplan PPO (Includes PHCS as a Payer) $1,698.20 ↑ +17%
Multiplan Complimentary Network Rate (Includes Multiplan as Payer) $1,940.80 ↑ +33%
InterGroup Beech Street $1,940.80 ↑ +33%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Indemnity/Commercial - Social Mission Indemnity/Managed Care/Managed Care - Social Mission $2,085.01 ↑ +43%
Highmark BCBS of PA UPMC Emergent $3,335.99 ↑ +129%
US Family Health Plan Tricare Prime not published by hospital

Visitor-reported prices

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Neck (Cervical Spine) MRI (with contrast) at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC Passavant-McCandless Pittsburgh $4,621.20 $316.41 – $6,546.70
UPMC East Monroeville $5,074.20 $341.40 – $6,765.60
UPMC Horizon-Greenville Greenville $4,973.40 $304.83 – $7,045.65
UPMC Jameson New Castle $1,929.60 $309.35 – $2,830.08
UPMC McKeesport Mckeesport $4,936.20 $315.59 – $6,992.95
UPMC Carlisle Carlisle $2,854.80 $338.22 – $4,044.30
UPMC Bedford Everett $4,625.40 $122.85 – $6,938.10
UPMC Altoona Altoona $1,810.80 $269.00 – $2,414.40

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →