Understanding Your Bill

As part of our ongoing commitment to provide the best possible service to our patients, we want you to understand the billing process that occurs after you visit a Penn Medicine facility.

If you have given us insurance information at the time of your visit, we will send a claim to your insurance company. Once your insurance company responds to our claim submission/request for reimbursement, you are often issued an Explanation of Benefits (EOB) from your insurer. This explanation should describe how your insurance company processed the bill.

You may then receive a billing statement from Penn Medicine for any remaining balances. This statement will include a summary of charges for the services you received in addition to any payments by you or your insurer.

Most of the services provided at our facility are made up of two components, the professional and technical. The hospital bills for the technical and/or facility services and the physician bills for the professional services and/or interpretation/reading of tests.

If you received services from a private practice physician who maintains medical staff privileges at a Penn Medicine hospital but is not employed by Penn Medicine, you will receive a bill directly from that physician's office and will need to contact the number on that specific billing statement if you have any questions.

Sample Statements

Here is a sample statement.

If your bill doesn’t look like the above and you have a question about it, please call the number on the document you received for assistance.

Charge Types

Penn Medicine bills for services rendered within the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Presbyterian Medical Center, Pennsylvania Hospital, Princeton Health, Chester County Hospital, and Penn Medicine Multispecialty Centers as well as all professional fees for the physician and practitioners who are part of the Clinical Practices of the University of Pennsylvania and Clinical Care Associates.

Charges could include:

  • Inpatient room charges
  • Operating room charges
  • Ancillary services (such as Pharmacy, Radiology or Laboratory Services ordered by your Physician)
  • Anesthesia
  • Nursing care
  • Meals
  • Physician services (Inpatient or outpatient hospital-based services)
  • Anesthesia
  • Diagnostic Testing and Interpretation
  • Specialty professional services
  • Radiology
  • Ambulance
  • Pathology

You also may receive statements for consultation charges if your primary care doctor or attending physician spoke with a specialist such as a radiologist or pathologist about your treatment or test results.

Billing Rights and Obligations

Not all medical costs are covered by insurance. The hospital makes every effort to see that everyone is billed correctly. It is up to you to provide complete and accurate health insurance coverage information during your visit.

Unpaid balances, including all applicable co-payments, co-insurance, deductibles and any non-covered services are the responsibility of the patient and/or patient's guarantor and must be paid upon receipt of the statement date.

Patients who are uninsured or do not provide adequate insurance information are responsible for the total cost of services.

Any payment arrangements, other than payment in full must be approved in order to keep the account from being considered past due. See Payment Options for more information.

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