Level 1 ER visit cost in Lancaster, PA — inpatient
In Lancaster, PA, 3 hospitals list a cash price for emergency room visit, level 1 of 5, minor problem that may not need a doctor as an inpatient: from $165.82 to $511.20, with a median of $391.20. The lowest listed price is at Penn State Health Lancaster Medical Center — $225.38 less than the median here. Across Pennsylvania, the median is $252.60 at 58 hospitals.
Cash prices at 3 facilities across 3 cities for code 99281, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between — and —.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Lancaster, PA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penn State Health Lancaster Medical Center lowest Lancaster, PA · (223) 287-9000 99281 EMERGENCY DEPT VISIT Tech | $165.82 | $572.00 | $70.33–$457.60 | 71% | — source file |
| UPMC Lititz Lititz, PA · (717) 625-2000 HC VISIT LEVEL 1 | $391.20 | $652.00 | $241.89–$554.20 | 40% | — source file |
| Ephrata Community Hospital Ephrata, PA · (717) 733-0311 Emergency Department Visit for Problem of Mild Severity | $511.20 | $639.00 | $407.81–$511.20 | 20% | — source file |
Inpatient: lowest $165.82, median $391.20, highest $511.20 — a 3.1× difference within the same market.
As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 3 facilities here, median $391.20 — that is the price to compare if you are not being admitted.
Cash or insurance?
At 2 of 3 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at none is it below every plan's rate. If you have insurance but have not met your deductible, you usually pay your plan's negotiated rate, which falls somewhere in the "Insurers pay" column. Paying cash can cost less, but a cash payment usually does not count toward your deductible. Ask the hospital for both numbers before you book.
What it is
This is the lowest of five emergency department visit levels, used for a minor problem that needs little care. Since 2023 this level may apply even when no physician or similar clinician needs to see the patient. The level is assigned after the visit: doctors pick it by the complexity of their medical decision making, and hospitals pick the facility level by the care and resources used, so a patient cannot choose it in advance.
What the price covers
The hospital price for this code is the facility fee for the ER visit. The emergency physician bills separately, and lab tests, imaging, medicines and procedures are added on top.