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Ghs insertion of needle - bone at UPMC St. Margaret

815 Freeport Road, Pittsburgh, PA · UPMC · · NPI 1790795359

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

$615.60

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.

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

$1,026.00

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.

$54.45 with UPMC Health Plan vs $872.10 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
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicaid $54.45 ↓ -91%
United Healthcare Community Plan for Families PA CHIP/PA Medicaid $54.45 ↓ -91%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicaid $73.41 ↓ -88%
AmeriHealth Caritas Community HealthChoices (CHC)/Medicaid $77.27 ↓ -87%
PA Health & Wellness PA Medicaid HMO $84.36 ↓ -86%
Highmark BCBS of PA Complete Blue Medicare Advantage/Freedom Blue Medicare Advantage/Security Blue Medicare Advantage $123.57 ↓ -80%
UPMC Health Plan Commercial $223.48 ↓ -64%
UPMC Work Partners Workers Comp $228.33 ↓ -63%
Aetna Neighborhood Network $258.55 ↓ -58%
Highmark BCBS of PA Managed Care - Social Mission $275.12 ↓ -55%
Aetna Home Depot Employer Group $281.12 ↓ -54%
Aetna NBR ASO/FI $287.28 ↓ -53%
Cigna New Business ASO $287.28 ↓ -53%
UPMC Health Plan Managed Medicare $328.47 ↓ -47%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Social Mission Indemnity $357.64 ↓ -42%
Highmark BCBS of PA Managed Care $368.46 ↓ -40%
Aetna EBR FI $389.88 ↓ -37%
Aetna of PA Medicare $399.46 ↓ -35%
Aetna EBR ASO $410.40 ↓ -33%
Cigna Commercial $410.40 ↓ -33%
Highmark Wholecare (prev Gateway) Medicare $410.84 ↓ -33%
PA Health & Wellness Allwell Medicare Advantage DSNP/Medicare Advantage (Allwell by Wellcare) $410.88 ↓ -33%
Aetna Medicare $418.48 ↓ -32%
Highmark BCBS of PA Commercial - Indemnity $478.99 ↓ -22%
Coventry/First Health Commercial $718.20 ↑ +17%
Highmark BCBS of PA UPMC Emergent $736.93 ↑ +20%
Private Health Care Systems PPO $820.80 ↑ +33%
SelectCare Commercial $820.80 ↑ +33%
Humana Commercial $872.10 ↑ +42%
US Family Health Plan Tricare Prime not published by hospital
Tricare East Region not published by hospital

Visitor-reported prices

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Ghs insertion of needle - bone at other Pennsylvania hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
UPMC Passavant-McCandless Pittsburgh $576.60 $54.45 – $816.85
UPMC Mercy Pittsburgh $322.20 $54.45 – $483.30
UPMC Presbyterian Pittsburgh $891.00 $54.45 – $1,262.25
UPMC Muncy Muncy $471.00 $54.45 – $628.00
UPMC Northwest Seneca $678.60 $54.45 – $961.35
UPMC Somerset Somerset $550.80 $54.45 – $688.50
UPMC Wellsboro Wellsboro $569.60 $54.45 – $640.80
UPMC Williamsport Williamsport $471.00 $54.45 – $628.00

All Pennsylvania hospitals for this procedure →