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Neck (Cervical Spine) MRI (with contrast) at UPMC Presbyterian

200 Lothrop Street, Pittsburgh, PA · UPMC · · NPI 119473412

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

$8,004.00

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.

Full explanation →

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

$13,340.00

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.

$322.80 with United Healthcare Community Plan for Families vs $11,339.00 with Humana — 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
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families PA CHIP/PA Medicaid $322.80 ↓ -96%
AmeriHealth Caritas Medicare $367.72 ↓ -95%
United Healthcare Medicare $367.72 ↓ -95%
Cigna Lifesource Medicare Transplant $367.72 ↓ -95%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $367.72 ↓ -95%
PA Health & Wellness Allwell Medicare Advantage DSNP/Medicare Advantage (Allwell by Wellcare) $367.72 ↓ -95%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicaid $372.90 ↓ -95%
Aetna Medicare $374.53 ↓ -95%
Aetna of PA Medicare $374.53 ↓ -95%
Aetna CHIP/Medicaid $440.70 ↓ -94%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $502.74 ↓ -94%
Health Partners Plans (Jefferson Health Plan) Medicaid/CHIP $511.21 ↓ -94%
Geisinger Medicaid/CHIP $527.72 ↓ -93%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $536.43 ↓ -93%
PA Health & Wellness Community Health Choices/PA Medicaid HMO $577.72 ↓ -93%
Highmark BCBS of PA Medicare Advantage $696.58 ↓ -91%
Premier Comp Solutions Worker's Comp $1,417.87 ↓ -82%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $1,524.21 ↓ -81%
Highmark BCBS of PA Managed Care - Social Mission $1,726.72 ↓ -78%
Multiplan Worker's Compensation $1,772.34 ↓ -78%
Highmark BCBS of PA Managed Care $2,312.30 ↓ -71%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Social Mission Indemnity $3,256.85 ↓ -59%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Indemnity $4,361.72 ↓ -46%
Highmark BCBS of PA UPMC Emergent $4,624.61 ↓ -42%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $6,255.13 ↓ -22%
Preferred Healthcare System PPO $8,671.00 ↑ +8%
Coventry/First Health Commercial $9,338.00 ↑ +17%
Fidelis Medicare $10,005.00 ↑ +25%
InterGroup InterGroup Services Corporation $10,005.00 ↑ +25%
Health Coalition Partners Intergroup $10,672.00 ↑ +33%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $10,672.00 ↑ +33%
SelectCare Commercial $10,672.00 ↑ +33%
Multiplan PPO $10,672.00 ↑ +33%
InterGroup Approved National Affiliated PPO Business $11,339.00 ↑ +42%
Health Payors Organization Commercial $11,339.00 ↑ +42%
Humana Commercial $11,339.00 ↑ +42%
Tricare East Region not published by hospital
US Family Health Plan Tricare Prime not published by hospital

Visitor-reported prices

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Neck (Cervical 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 Magee Pittsburgh $5,191.20 $318.66 – $7,959.84
UPMC Mercy Pittsburgh $5,313.60 $283.82 – $7,970.40
UPMC St. Margaret Pittsburgh $4,742.40 $293.97 – $6,718.40
UPMC East Monroeville $5,074.20 $341.40 – $6,765.60
UPMC Hamot Erie $1,455.60 $220.65 – $1,698.20
UPMC Horizon-Greenville Greenville $4,973.40 $304.83 – $7,045.65
UPMC Jameson New Castle $1,929.60 $309.35 – $2,830.08

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →