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Esophagoscopy balloon <30mm at UPMC Mercy

1400 Locust Street, Pittsburgh, PA · UPMC · · NPI 163914308

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

$2,794.80

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.

$4,658.00

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.

$122.47 with UPMC Health Plan vs $4,192.20 with Health Payors Organization — 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 Medicaid $122.47 ↓ -96%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families PA Medicaid $128.04 ↓ -95%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $165.12 ↓ -94%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $176.18 ↓ -94%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $189.75 ↓ -93%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $444.00 ↓ -84%
Highmark BCBS of PA Complete Blue Medicare Advantage/Freedom Blue Medicare Advantage/Security Blue Medicare Advantage $545.04 ↓ -80%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $592.97 ↓ -79%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $1,088.35 ↓ -61%
Highmark BCBS of PA Managed Care - Social Mission $1,227.54 ↓ -56%
Aetna Neighborhood Network $1,299.58 ↓ -54%
Aetna Home Depot Employer Group $1,418.36 ↓ -49%
Aetna NBR ASO/FI $1,443.98 ↓ -48%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicare $1,507.61 ↓ -46%
Cigna New Business ASO $1,583.72 ↓ -43%
Bravo Medicare $1,630.30 ↓ -42%
Highmark BCBS of PA Managed Care $1,643.85 ↓ -41%
UPMC Health Plan CHIP $1,732.30 ↓ -38%
Aetna EBR FI $1,770.04 ↓ -37%
UPMC Health Plan EPO Partners/EPO Select Plan/HMO $1,855.93 ↓ -34%
Cigna Commercial $1,863.20 ↓ -33%
Aetna EBR ASO $1,863.20 ↓ -33%
Aetna of PA Medicare $1,898.98 ↓ -32%
AmeriHealth Caritas Medicare $1,953.23 ↓ -30%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $1,953.23 ↓ -30%
PA Health & Wellness Allwell Medicare Advantage DSNP/Medicare Advantage (Allwell by Wellcare) $1,953.23 ↓ -30%
Aetna Medicare $1,989.40 ↓ -29%
Coventry/First Health Commercial $2,049.52 ↓ -27%
InterGroup PPO $2,329.00 ↓ -17%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Social Mission Indemnity $2,521.08 ↓ -10%
Cigna Behavioral Health Commercial $2,794.80 ↑ +0%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Indemnity $3,376.25 ↑ +21%
InterGroup Approved National Affiliated PPO Business $3,726.40 ↑ +33%
American Healthcare Group Commercial $3,726.40 ↑ +33%
National Provider Network PPO $3,819.56 ↑ +37%
Multiplan PPO (inc. Auto and Worker's Compensation) $4,192.20 ↑ +50%
Health Payors Organization Commercial $4,192.20 ↑ +50%
Tricare East Region not published by hospital
US Family Health Plan Tricare Prime not published by hospital

Visitor-reported prices

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Esophagoscopy balloon <30mm at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC Presbyterian Pittsburgh $3,759.00 $122.47 – $5,325.25
UPMC Somerset Somerset $2,361.00 $122.47 – $2,951.25
UPMC Wellsboro Wellsboro $4,128.80 $122.47 – $4,644.90

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →