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Rising Facility Fees in Pennsylvania: What Patients Need to Know About Surprise Medical Charges

  • Asia Tabb
A room at a health care facility 
Proposed federal funding cuts could jeopardize health coverage for over 300,000 Pennsylvanians, drive up health care costs, and put hospitals at risk of closure, especially in rural communities. The loss of coverage is likely to result in Pennsylvanians delaying necessary health care and could significantly increase medical costs over time.
 
Ensuring rural Pennsylvanians have access to quality health care is a top priority for Governor Josh Shapiro. His proposed 2025-26 budget makes common-sense investments in rural health aimed at keeping rural hospitals open and recruiting more high-quality professionals to these facilities.

 Commonwealth Media Services

A room at a health care facility Proposed federal funding cuts could jeopardize health coverage for over 300,000 Pennsylvanians, drive up health care costs, and put hospitals at risk of closure, especially in rural communities. The loss of coverage is likely to result in Pennsylvanians delaying necessary health care and could significantly increase medical costs over time. Ensuring rural Pennsylvanians have access to quality health care is a top priority for Governor Josh Shapiro. His proposed 2025-26 budget makes common-sense investments in rural health aimed at keeping rural hospitals open and recruiting more high-quality professionals to these facilities.

AIRED; March 27, 2026

Listen to the podcast to hear the full conversation. 

A new investigative feature is shedding light on the growing issue of “facility fees” in the State College, Pennsylvania area and across the country—extra charges often added to medical bills to help cover hospital costs, but increasingly appearing at non-hospital offices without clear warning to patients. The reporting, published by Sydney Roach of WPSU, highlights how these fees can range from a few hundred dollars to unexpected bills of $3,000 or more, especially as hospital systems consolidate and reclassify outpatient clinics as hospital-affiliated locations. The series also explores the policy debate in Pennsylvania, including insights from Dawn Keefer, who shared a case from her district where a patient received a $3,800 charge despite being quoted far less.

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