healthcosts.net

Very long chain fatty acids 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

$383.40

Cash price

?

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.

$639.00

Gross charge

?

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.

$16.46 with UPMC Health Plan vs $575.10 with Health Payors Organization — same scan, same building. Share

Negotiated rates by payer
?

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
?

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
?

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 Medicare $16.46 ↓ -96%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $19.52 ↓ -95%
Geisinger Medicaid/CHIP $19.75 ↓ -95%
UPMC Health Plan EPO Partners/EPO Select Plan/HMO $20.27 ↓ -95%
Aetna of PA Medicare $20.74 ↓ -95%
AmeriHealth Caritas Medicare $21.33 ↓ -94%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $21.33 ↓ -94%
PA Health & Wellness Allwell Medicare Advantage DSNP/Medicare Advantage (Allwell by Wellcare) $21.33 ↓ -94%
Aetna Medicare $21.73 ↓ -94%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicaid $21.97 ↓ -94%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families PA Medicaid $22.97 ↓ -94%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $29.62 ↓ -92%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $31.60 ↓ -92%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $34.03 ↓ -91%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $36.34 ↓ -91%
Highmark BCBS of PA Complete Blue Medicare Advantage/Freedom Blue Medicare Advantage/Security Blue Medicare Advantage $47.94 ↓ -87%
Highmark BCBS of PA Managed Care - Social Mission $72.40 ↓ -81%
Highmark BCBS of PA Managed Care $96.95 ↓ -75%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Social Mission Indemnity $114.43 ↓ -70%
UPMC Health Plan CHIP $131.71 ↓ -66%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Indemnity $153.25 ↓ -60%
Aetna Neighborhood Network $178.28 ↓ -54%
Aetna Home Depot Employer Group $194.58 ↓ -49%
Aetna NBR ASO/FI $198.09 ↓ -48%
Cigna New Business ASO $217.26 ↓ -43%
Bravo Medicare $223.65 ↓ -42%
Aetna EBR FI $242.82 ↓ -37%
Cigna Commercial $255.60 ↓ -33%
Aetna EBR ASO $255.60 ↓ -33%
Coventry/First Health Commercial $281.16 ↓ -27%
InterGroup PPO $319.50 ↓ -17%
Cigna Behavioral Health Commercial $383.40 ↑ +0%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $479.25 ↑ +25%
InterGroup Approved National Affiliated PPO Business $511.20 ↑ +33%
American Healthcare Group Commercial $511.20 ↑ +33%
National Provider Network PPO $523.98 ↑ +37%
Multiplan PPO (inc. Auto and Worker's Compensation) $575.10 ↑ +50%
Health Payors Organization Commercial $575.10 ↑ +50%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Very long chain fatty acids at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC Passavant-McCandless Pittsburgh $176.40 $18.35 – $249.90
UPMC Presbyterian Pittsburgh $812.40 $19.52 – $1,150.90
UPMC St. Margaret Pittsburgh $1,558.20 $17.05 – $2,207.45
UPMC Northwest Seneca $315.00 $17.91 – $446.25
UPMC Somerset Somerset $42.00 $19.52 – $52.50

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →