Upper endoscopy with wire-guided dilation cost in San Diego, CA
In San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA, 4 hospitals list a cash price for upper endoscopy (EGD) with widening of the esophagus over a guide wire: from $1,664.00 to $2,498.65, with a median of $1,664.00. The lowest listed price is at Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Diego - Clairemont Mesa and 2 other hospitals. Across California, the median is $1,779.75 at 56 hospitals.
Cash prices at 4 facilities across 2 cities for code 43248, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 and Apr 1, 2026.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Diego - Clairemont Mesa lowest San Diego, CA EGD INSERT GUIDE WIRE DILATOR PASSAGE ESOPHAGUS | $1,664.00 | $3,200.00 | $930.00–$2,766.00 | 48% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Marcos lowest San Marcos, CA · (760) 528-6295 EGD INSERT GUIDE WIRE DILATOR PASSAGE ESOPHAGUS | $1,664.00 | $3,200.00 | $930.00–$2,766.00 | 48% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Diego - Zion lowest San Diego, CA · (619) 528-5000 EGD INSERT GUIDE WIRE DILATOR PASSAGE ESOPHAGUS | $1,664.00 | $3,200.00 | $930.00–$2,766.00 | 48% | — source file |
| UC San Diego Medical Center San Diego, CA · (619) 543-6222 Insertion Of Guide Wire With Dilation Of Esophagus Using An Endoscope | $2,498.65 | $4,543.00 | $212.00–$10,382.01 | 45% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| UC San Diego Medical Center San Diego, CA · (619) 543-6222 Insertion Of Guide Wire With Dilation Of Esophagus Using An Endoscope | $7,918.08 | $14,396.51 | $35.00–$10,382.01 | 45% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $1,664.00, median $1,664.00, highest $2,498.65 — a 1.5× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 4 facilities here, median $1,664.00. Inpatient and outpatient prices are not comparable and are kept on separate pages: the inpatient charge covers admission, not the same purchase.
Cash or insurance?
At 4 of 4 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 code covers upper endoscopy in which a narrowed esophagus is stretched with dilators passed over a guide wire.
What the price covers
The facility price covers the endoscopy room, equipment and recovery. The doctor, sedation and any lab exam of tissue are usually billed separately.