CMS Price Transparency Data

CT scan, head (no contrast)

Facility: UPMC Altoona

Billing Code: 70450 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price high confidence

A fair price for this

$119

about 1.1× the $107 Medicare rate · typically $87–$234

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$119

About the fair price

1.1× Medicare

Medicare pays $107 Fair price $119 This hospital $119 Cash price $961 Hospital's list price $1,602

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other PA hospitals

Highest price of the 9 PA hospitals we have prices for — worth calling around.

Cheapest $67 Priciest $119

Black dot = this hospital, among the 9 PA hospitals with a price for this procedure. Full list below.

⚠ The cash price looks unusually high next to the insurance price — it may be the full list price, not a real cash discount. Call to confirm the self-pay rate.

A fair price for a CT scan, head (no contrast) is about $119 (about 1.1× the $107 Medicare rate). UPMC Altoona charges insurers about $119, or about $961 in cash — about the fair price. Located in Altoona, PA.

What each insurance company pays

Which insurers have negotiated a price with this hospital for this procedure — and which haven’t.

4 of 6 major insurers have a published price at this hospital

✓ UnitedHealthcare✓ Blue Cross Blue Shield✓ Aetna✓ Cigna HumanaKaiser Permanente

Crossed out = this hospital hasn’t published a negotiated price for that insurer for this procedure. It doesn’t necessarily mean they aren’t accepted — ask your insurer.

Insurance company	Price range	vs. Medicare
UnitedHealthcaremajor	$81 - $821	76%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$115 - $801	108%
Aetnamajor	$78 - $849	73%
Cignamajor	$801	750%
AmeriHealth	$121	113%
Geisinger	$108 - $881	101%
HealthPartners	$117	110%
UPMC Health Plan	$85 - $894	80%
+ 2 smaller / regional plans	$132 - $1,282

Excludes 1 rental-network / third-party entry (e.g. Multiplan, PHCS) — these are pricing networks, not insurers.

Self-Pay How to get the cash price

Tell the billing desk you want to be billed as self-pay — not through insurance — before your visit.
Ask for the cash / prompt-pay discount in writing, with the exact price (about 961), before you agree to anything.
Get it in writing that they won’t also bill your insurance, so the cash price is what you owe.
Check the CPT code on your bill matches exactly: 70450.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm UPMC Altoona is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 70450.
Confirm the doctor or provider is in-network too — not just the hospital building.
Check your Explanation of Benefits against the hospital’s final itemized bill.

Estimate your out-of-pocket cost

A rough estimate of what you’d pay with insurance (deductible + coinsurance) versus paying the cash price yourself.

How you’d pay

Deductible left to meet ($)

Your coinsurance (%)

Enter your details and press estimate to compare.

Other Procedures at UPMC Altoona

Compare: CT scan, head (no contrast) at other PA hospitals

Insurance negotiated median for the same procedure, sorted lowest first.