US Health Care Costs

Back problems (no surgery) in Pennsylvania

MS-DRG 552: Medical back problems without mcc

$38,737typical hospital bill
$7,904typical amount paid
$5,769–$13,342range paid across 76 hospitals

Pennsylvania hospitals billed Medicare a typical $38,737 for this stay in 2024, about 4.9 times what was actually paid. Medicare's payment depends mostly on the hospital's location and teaching role; the bill depends on the hospital's own price list, so bills vary far more than payments.

Billed (list price)Actually paid (Medicare + patient)

HospitalCityMedicare staysBilledPaid
Heritage Valley SewickleySewickley12$11,070$5,769
Ahn Wexford HospitalWexford13$24,824$6,094
Jefferson HospitalJefferson Hills24$31,613$6,375
St Clair HospitalPittsburgh11$23,567$6,396
Jefferson Lansdale HospitalLansdale24$27,097$6,459
Geisinger St. Luke's HospitalOrwigsburg21$32,575$6,462
Wellspan Evangelical Community HospitalLewisburg15$42,370$6,500
Upmc CarlisleCarlisle12$24,769$6,618
St Luke's Hospital - Grand View CampusSellersville52$29,486$6,675
Doylestown HospitalDoylestown24$23,245$6,694
Penn State Health Holy Spirit Medical CenterCamp Hill39$42,676$6,727
Riddle Memorial HospitalMedia19$60,819$6,799
Upmc MemorialYork16$32,892$6,832
Lehigh Valley Hospital - HazletonHazleton15$45,058$6,838
Upmc EastMonroeville14$29,608$6,839
Upmc NorthwestSeneca12$20,606$6,931
Pottstown HospitalPottstown16$47,036$6,982
Paoli HospitalPaoli61$62,149$7,014
Wilkes-Barre General HospitalWilkes-Barre36$43,299$7,057
Upmc WilliamsportWilliamsport35$40,530$7,093
Upmc PassavantPittsburgh46$43,927$7,134
Forbes HospitalMonroeville48$34,915$7,148
Regional Hospital of ScrantonScranton12$45,649$7,173
Uniontown HospitalUniontown19$16,061$7,182
Chester County HospitalWest Chester47$43,146$7,262
The Washington HospitalWashington11$12,731$7,308
Penn Highlands DuboisDubois40$24,965$7,341
Holy Redeemer Hospital and Medical CenterMeadowbrook35$26,582$7,396
Meadville Medical CenterMeadville14$20,822$7,444
St Luke's Hospital - Monroe CampusStroudsburg24$68,585$7,493
Geisinger-Community Medical CenterScranton48$77,163$7,531
Indiana Regional Medical CenterIndiana13$19,560$7,554
Bryn Mawr HospitalBryn Mawr23$56,692$7,554
Upmc St MargaretPittsburgh20$37,633$7,648
Lehigh Valley Hospital - PoconoEast Stroudsburg32$45,882$7,681
Upmc AltoonaAltoona34$28,770$7,821
Lancaster General HospitalLancaster105$32,282$7,875
Phoenixville HospitalPhoenixville23$42,572$7,892
St Luke's Hospital - Carbon CampusLehighton11$66,253$7,917
Lehigh Valley Hospital - Dickson CityDickson City15$30,197$8,011
St Mary Medical CenterLanghorne55$30,925$8,012
Upmc Pinnacle HospitalsHarrisburg43$30,332$8,017
Wellspan Chambersburg HospitalChambersburg30$29,263$8,064
Saint Vincent HospitalErie25$40,903$8,279
St Luke's Hospital - Upper Bucks CampusQuakertown14$63,532$8,283
Penn State Health St. JosephReading13$33,679$8,309
Jefferson Abington HospitalAbington133$34,641$8,331
Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical CenterWilkes Barre44$80,687$8,347
Reading HospitalWest Reading103$37,254$8,552
Upmc LititzLititz12$24,078$8,641
Main Line Hospital LankenauWynnewood31$62,269$8,722
Upmc HamotErie52$54,756$8,724
Mount Nittany Medical CenterState College29$26,090$8,755
Lehigh Valley HospitalAllentown276$55,519$8,798
Jefferson Health- NortheastPhiladelphia61$30,796$8,980
Nazareth HospitalPhiladelphia11$30,632$9,083
Jefferson Einstein Montgomery HospitalEast Norriton21$36,570$9,129
Conemaugh Memorial Medical CenterJohnstown22$29,711$9,315
Penn State Health Lancaster Medical CenterLancaster18$33,118$9,352
Crozer Chester Medical CenterUpland21$71,806$9,598
Pennsylvania HospitalPhiladelphia18$64,335$9,783
St Lukes HospitalBethlehem95$70,369$9,817
Upmc MercyPittsburgh36$65,242$10,057
Allegheny General HospitalPittsburgh62$39,841$10,220
Upmc Presbyterian ShadysidePittsburgh67$91,435$10,244
Penn Presbyterian Medical CenterPhiladelphia26$67,559$10,335
Wellspan York HospitalYork60$33,240$10,401
Penn State Health Hampden Medical CenterEnola12$28,126$10,728
Robert Packer HospitalSayre23$41,880$11,166
Geisinger Medical CenterDanville48$72,944$11,177
St Luke's Hospital - Anderson CampusEaston73$70,587$11,538
Milton S Hershey Medical CenterHershey17$54,222$11,607
Hospital of Univ of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia22$83,537$12,728
Jefferson Einstein Philadelphia HospitalPhiladelphia17$40,673$13,155
Thomas Jefferson University HospitalPhiladelphia43$63,095$13,186
Temple University HospitalPhiladelphia24$118,763$13,342

Medicare: CMS, 2024 (hospitals with 11 or more Medicare stays). Cash and insurer prices: hospitals' own price files, where read; insurer figures are commercial plans only, median and 10th–90th percentile across plans.