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Lower Back (Lumbar Spine) MRI (with and without contrast) at UPMC Bedford

10455 Lincoln Highway, Everett, PA · UPMC · · NPI 1295724193

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

$2,884.20

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.

$4,807.00

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.

$122.85 with Aetna of PA vs $4,326.30 with SelectCare — 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 of PA Medicare $122.85 ↓ -96%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicare $293.63 ↓ -90%
Highmark BCBS of PA Community Blue Medicare Advantage/Complete Blue Medicare Advantage/Freedom Blue Medicare Advantage/Security Blue Medicare Advantage/Together Blue Medicare Advantage $340.48 ↓ -88%
Aetna Medicare $350.69 ↓ -88%
UPMC Health Plan EPO Partners/EPO Select Plan/HMO $351.44 ↓ -88%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families Unison MedPLUS $355.95 ↓ -88%
United Healthcare Medicare $364.31 ↓ -87%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $367.68 ↓ -87%
AmeriHealth Caritas Medicare $367.72 ↓ -87%
Cigna Medicare $367.72 ↓ -87%
PA Health & Wellness Allwell Medicare Advantage DSNP/Medicare Advantage (Allwell by Wellcare) $367.72 ↓ -87%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicaid $372.90 ↓ -87%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families Unison Kids $389.85 ↓ -86%
Aetna Medicaid $423.75 ↓ -85%
Geisinger Medicaid/CHIP $471.18 ↓ -84%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $502.74 ↓ -83%
Health Partners Plans (Jefferson Health Plan) Medicaid/CHIP $511.21 ↓ -82%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $529.21 ↓ -82%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $577.72 ↓ -80%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $1,058.27 ↓ -63%
Cigna EBR $1,922.80 ↓ -33%
Cigna Commercial $1,922.80 ↓ -33%
Aetna EBR ASO $1,922.80 ↓ -33%
Aetna EBR FI $2,355.43 ↓ -18%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $2,380.18 ↓ -17%
United Healthcare Compass Exchange $2,643.85 ↓ -8%
Aetna Neighborhood Network $2,980.34 ↑ +3%
Aetna Home Depot Employer Group $3,062.06 ↑ +6%
Cigna NBR ASO/FI $3,124.55 ↑ +8%
Aetna NBR ASO/FI $3,124.55 ↑ +8%
Cigna New Business ASO $3,124.55 ↑ +8%
United Healthcare All Business $3,124.55 ↑ +8%
InterGroup PPO $3,124.55 ↑ +8%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Social Mission Indemnity/Managed Care - Social Mission $3,335.09 ↑ +16%
Coventry/First Health Commercial $3,364.90 ↑ +17%
UPMC Health Plan CHIP $3,794.78 ↑ +32%
Preferred Healthcare System PPO $3,845.60 ↑ +33%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Indemnity/Managed Care $4,108.51 ↑ +42%
Health Coalition Partners Intergroup $4,326.30 ↑ +50%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $4,326.30 ↑ +50%
Humana Commercial $4,326.30 ↑ +50%
SelectCare Commercial $4,326.30 ↑ +50%
Tricare TRICARE not published by hospital
US Family Health Plan Tricare Prime not published by hospital

Visitor-reported prices

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Lower Back (Lumbar Spine) MRI (with and without contrast) at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC Passavant-McCandless Pittsburgh $5,999.40 $316.41 – $8,499.15
UPMC East Monroeville $6,218.40 $341.40 – $8,291.20
UPMC Hamot Erie $2,536.20 $281.64 – $2,958.90
UPMC Carlisle Carlisle $2,713.80 $338.22 – $3,844.55
UPMC Altoona Altoona $2,604.00 $269.00 – $3,472.00
UPMC Cole Coudersport $1,907.40 $355.95 – $2,543.20
UPMC Community Osteopathic Harrisburg $2,713.80 $347.79 – $3,844.55
UPMC Hanover Hanover $2,713.80 $337.76 – $3,935.01

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →