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Magnesium sulfate 2 gram/50 ml (4 %) in water intravenous piggyback at UPMC Passavant-McCandless

9100 Babcock Boulevard, Pittsburgh, PA · UPMC · · NPI 1225047699

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Mar 7, 2026 · Ingested Aug 13, 2026

$237.00

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.

$395.00

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.

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The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.

$0.30 with UPMC Health Plan vs $5.10 with Private Health Care Systems — 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.

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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 $0.30 ↓ -100%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $0.48 ↓ -100%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $0.48 ↓ -100%
PA Health & Wellness PA Medicaid HMO $0.48 ↓ -100%
Highmark BCBS of PA Complete Blue Medicare Advantage/Freedom Blue Medicare Advantage/Security Blue Medicare Advantage $0.58 ↓ -100%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $0.59 ↓ -100%
Aetna Medicare $1.50 ↓ -99%
Highmark BCBS of PA Managed Care - Social Mission $1.60 ↓ -99%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Social Mission Indemnity $1.61 ↓ -99%
Cigna New Business ASO $2.04 ↓ -99%
Highmark BCBS of PA Managed Care $2.14 ↓ -99%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Indemnity $2.16 ↓ -99%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $2.16 ↓ -99%
Cigna Commercial $2.40 ↓ -99%
Private Health Care Systems Workers' Comp $2.51 ↓ -99%
Health Plan of Upper Ohio Valley Commercial $2.77 ↓ -99%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $3.00 ↓ -99%
Coventry/First Health Commercial $4.20 ↓ -98%
Highmark BCBS of PA UPMC Emergent $4.28 ↓ -98%
InterGroup PPO $4.98 ↓ -98%
Humana Commercial $5.10 ↓ -98%
Multiplan PPO (Includes Workers' Comp) $5.10 ↓ -98%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $5.10 ↓ -98%

Visitor-reported prices

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Magnesium sulfate 2 gram/50 ml (4 %) in water intravenous piggyback at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC Mercy Pittsburgh $85.80 $0.15 – $0.58
UPMC Presbyterian Pittsburgh $186.00 $0.30 – $5.10
UPMC St. Margaret Pittsburgh $85.20 $0.15 – $0.58
UPMC Muncy Muncy $74.40 $0.15 – $0.90
UPMC Northwest Seneca $239.40 $0.15 – $1.50
UPMC Wellsboro Wellsboro $74.40 $0.18 – $0.90
UPMC Williamsport Williamsport $74.40 $0.27 – $0.90

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →