Nonprofit imaging provider says it can save patients thousands on PET scans amid rising costs

A Sacramento-based imaging provider says it is delivering PET/CT scans at costs up to 80% lower than hospitals, positioning itself as an affordable option as employers and patients face rising out-of-pocket healthcare costs.

Northern California PET Imaging Center, a nonprofit outpatient provider specializing exclusively in PET/CT imaging, reports billed charges that are a fraction of the cost of hospital-based care while maintaining what it describes as comparable or higher diagnostic capability.

Rising costs are shaping patient behavior. About one in three Americans say they have skipped or postponed needed healthcare due to cost, according to KFF, a nonprofit health policy research organization.

Northern California PET Imaging Center CEO Bradley Schmidt said the center’s lower-cost model is built around specialization and lower overhead than hospital systems, which he said typically carry broader operational costs tied to staffing, infrastructure and regulatory requirements.

“We’re very efficient at how we operate the business, and all we do is these specific studies,” Schmidt said, adding the organization reinvests most of its revenue into equipment and technology.

PET scans, or positron emission tomography scans, show how cells are functioning inside the body. When combined with a CT scan, which maps the body’s structure, the exam helps doctors pinpoint where diseases such as cancer or neurological conditions are active and how they are progressing, Schmidt said.

Despite their clinical benefits, PET scans remain relatively uncommon. Schmidt said about 3 million PET scans are performed annually in the U.S., compared to roughly 700 million total diagnostic imaging studies.

The pricing difference between hospital-based imaging and outpatient centers has become more visible as insurance designs shift more costs to patients. Schmidt said some patients can face coinsurance rates as high as 50% for imaging, depending on their insurance plan. That can amount to thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket expenses depending on where the scan is performed.

Company-provided data offers an illustrative example of that gap, though results can vary by insurer and plan design. In a 2025 case study, Northern California PET Imaging Center said a commercially insured patient would have paid about $5,360 out of pocket for a PET/CT scan at a high-cost hospital, compared to roughly $1,290 at its outpatient facility, a difference of about $4,000.

The same analysis estimated insurer payments would be about $14,786 lower when the scan was performed at the outpatient center rather than a hospital.

Schmidt said those savings can be especially meaningful for employers with self-funded health plans that directly absorb medical claims costs.

“If it’s a self-funded employer plan, they’re basically writing checks for a lot of the care,” Schmidt said. “So just that unit cost savings is huge.”

The Business Journal spoke to a hospital industry spokesman who didn’t dispute the cost comparison. But he said the higher cost of a PET scan in a hospital stems from the expenses hospitals absorb to provide around-the-clock emergency care, comply with extensive regulatory requirements and treat more medically complex patients regardless of their ability to pay.

“Hospitals never close, and they are open to all,” said David Simon, senior vice president of communications for the California Hospital Association. “All of that gets spread across the services that are provided.”

Simon said hospitals also maintain what the industry refers to as “standby capacity,” meaning they are staffed and equipped to respond to emergencies, natural disasters and complex cases at all hours, regardless of whether those resources are actively being used at a given moment.

He also argued hospital-based imaging and freestanding outpatient imaging centers are not always directly comparable because hospitals often treat patients with multiple underlying health conditions and higher care needs.

“Hospitals are there to serve their communities and serve that complex patient,” Simon said. “That standby capacity is not free.”

He said outpatient imaging providers can play a complementary role within the healthcare system.

“There is extraordinary space in the healthcare sector for different types of services in different types of settings that meet people’s needs based on where they are and what exact type of care their physician is recommending.” Simon said.

Beyond pricing, Schmidt said the center’s technology is designed to improve diagnostic precision and speed. Northern California PET Imaging Center recently upgraded to 160- and 80-slice digital PET/CT systems, which he said produce clearer images, reduce radiotracer dose requirements and shorten scan times compared to older-generation systems. Schmidt said many exams can now be completed in roughly five to 12 minutes, compared to 18 to 45 minutes on some older scanners.

The center traces its origins to 1992, when it was founded as a nonprofit joint venture between Sutter Health and Mercy Medical Group with clinical support from Radiological Associates of Sacramento, Schmidt said. PET imaging was still emerging at the time and Medicare did not begin covering PET scans until 1998.

“It was remarkable that Sutter and Mercy supported bringing this technology to Sacramento despite limited insurance coverage at the time,” Schmidt said.

Northern California PET Imaging Center became an independent nonprofit organization in 2017, he said.

Schmidt, who does not come from a clinical background, entered the medical imaging industry after graduating from University of Southern California and joining Siemens Medical Solutions in 1998 through a national radiology training program. He later worked with CTI Molecular Imaging Inc. before launching and operating a PET-focused imaging company in Los Angeles centered on imaging access and affordability for roughly 15 years before joining Northern California PET Imaging Center in 2023.

Today, the center operates two locations, which are in East Sacramento and Rocklin. Along with serving patients, the center conducts research imaging for clinical trials in partnership with institutions such as UC Davis Health, using PET/CT scans to support the development and evaluation of new therapies, Schmidt said.

Schmidt said the organization works with roughly 500 referring physicians annually and has performed more than 75,000 scans across oncology, neurology and research.

The center accepts Medicare, Medi-Cal and most major commercial insurance plans, including through managed care relationships involving Sutter, Mercy, Hill Physicians Medical Group, Nivano Physicians, Partnership HealthPlan of California and other networks, Schmidt said.

Nearly all the center’s business comes through insurance coverage, Schmidt said, though patients paying directly out of pocket generally face costs ranging from roughly $2,200 to $8,500 depending on the type of PET/CT exam and radiopharmaceutical used.

Schmidt said referrals are typically directed by care navigators and utilization management teams within health systems and insurers, with factors such as access, turnaround time and cost influencing where patients are sent.

The center said it can often schedule patients within 48 to 72 hours and return results quickly.

As hospitals expand outpatient strategies of their own, Schmidt said independent imaging centers will continue to play a role, particularly for high-deductible patients, Medicare and Medi-Cal populations, employers seeking to control costs and research organizations requiring specialized imaging.

“We’re very sensitive to patient costs,” Schmidt said. “These are cancer patients or dementia patients. The last thing you want to do is add unnecessary financial burden.”