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Lower Back (Lumbar Spine) MRI (with contrast) at UPMC Bedford

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

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

$4,017.60

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.

Full explanation →

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

$6,696.00

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 $6,026.40 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 ↓ -97%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicare $293.63 ↓ -93%
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 ↓ -92%
Aetna Medicare $350.69 ↓ -91%
UPMC Health Plan EPO Partners/EPO Select Plan/HMO $351.44 ↓ -91%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families Unison MedPLUS $355.95 ↓ -91%
United Healthcare Medicare $364.31 ↓ -91%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $367.68 ↓ -91%
AmeriHealth Caritas Medicare $367.72 ↓ -91%
Cigna Medicare $367.72 ↓ -91%
PA Health & Wellness Allwell Medicare Advantage DSNP/Medicare Advantage (Allwell by Wellcare) $367.72 ↓ -91%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicaid $372.90 ↓ -91%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families Unison Kids $389.85 ↓ -90%
Aetna Medicaid $423.75 ↓ -89%
Geisinger Medicaid/CHIP $471.18 ↓ -88%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $502.74 ↓ -87%
Health Partners Plans (Jefferson Health Plan) Medicaid/CHIP $511.21 ↓ -87%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $529.21 ↓ -87%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $577.72 ↓ -86%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $602.94 ↓ -85%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $1,350.45 ↓ -66%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Social Mission Indemnity/Managed Care - Social Mission $1,889.35 ↓ -53%
UPMC Health Plan CHIP $2,162.05 ↓ -46%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Indemnity/Managed Care $2,327.50 ↓ -42%
Cigna EBR $2,678.40 ↓ -33%
Cigna Commercial $2,678.40 ↓ -33%
Aetna EBR ASO $2,678.40 ↓ -33%
Aetna EBR FI $3,281.04 ↓ -18%
United Healthcare Compass Exchange $3,682.80 ↓ -8%
Aetna Neighborhood Network $4,151.52 ↑ +3%
Aetna Home Depot Employer Group $4,265.35 ↑ +6%
Cigna NBR ASO/FI $4,352.40 ↑ +8%
Aetna NBR ASO/FI $4,352.40 ↑ +8%
Cigna New Business ASO $4,352.40 ↑ +8%
United Healthcare All Business $4,352.40 ↑ +8%
InterGroup PPO $4,352.40 ↑ +8%
Coventry/First Health Commercial $4,687.20 ↑ +17%
Preferred Healthcare System PPO $5,356.80 ↑ +33%
Health Coalition Partners Intergroup $6,026.40 ↑ +50%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $6,026.40 ↑ +50%
Humana Commercial $6,026.40 ↑ +50%
SelectCare Commercial $6,026.40 ↑ +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 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 Hamot Erie $1,546.80 $220.65 – $1,804.60
UPMC Carlisle Carlisle $2,713.80 $338.22 – $3,844.55
UPMC Altoona Altoona $1,810.80 $269.00 – $2,414.40
UPMC Cole Coudersport $1,237.80 $320.31 – $1,650.40
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 →