HIDA scan cost in Cincinnati, OH — inpatient
In Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN, 13 hospitals list a cash price for HIDA scan: nuclear imaging of the liver, bile ducts and gallbladder as an inpatient: from $799.20 to $2,100.60, with a median of $1,066.80. The lowest listed price is at Kettering Medical Center and 2 other hospitals — $267.60 less than the median here. Across Ohio, the median is $1,540.50 at 93 hospitals.
Cash prices at 13 facilities across 9 cities for code 78226, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 and Jul 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 Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kettering Medical Center lowest Miamisburg, OH · (937) 384-8760 Hc Gallbladder(Hepatobiliary) | $799.20 | $1,998.00 | — | 60% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Kettering Medical Center lowest Kettering, OH Hc Gallbladder(Hepatobiliary) | $799.20 | $1,998.00 | — | 60% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Fort Hamilton Hospital lowest Hamilton, OH · (513) 867-2123 Hc Gallbladder(Hepatobiliary) | $799.20 | $1,998.00 | — | 60% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Children's Hospital Medical Center Cincinnati, OH · (513) 636-3333 Hb Hepatobiliary Scan | $1,012.35 | $1,985.00 | $952.80–$1,985.00 | 49% | — source file |
| Mercy Health Kings Mills Hospital Mason, OH · (513) 637-9999 HC NM Hepatobiliary Imaging WO Pharm | $1,066.80 | $1,778.00 | — | 40% | — source file |
| The Jewish Hospital-Mercy Health Cincinnati, OH · (513) 686-3000 HC NM Hepatobiliary Imaging WO Pharm | $1,066.80 | $1,778.00 | — | 40% | — source file |
| Mercy Health Anderson Hospital Cincinnati, OH · (513) 624-4500 HC NM Hepatobiliary Imaging WO Pharm | $1,066.80 | $1,778.00 | — | 40% | — source file |
| Mercy Health Fairfield Hospital Fairfield, OH · (513) 870-7000 HC NM Hepatobiliary Imaging WO Pharm | $1,066.80 | $1,778.00 | — | 40% | — source file |
| Mercy Health Clermont Hospital Batavia, OH · (513) 732-8278 HC NM Hepatobiliary Imaging WO Pharm | $1,066.80 | $1,778.00 | — | 40% | — source file |
| Mercy Health West Hospital Cincinnati, OH · (513) 215-5000 HC NM Hepatobiliary Imaging WO Pharm | $1,066.80 | $1,778.00 | — | 40% | — source file |
| McCullough-Hyde Memorial Hospital Oxford, OH · (513) 523-2111 HC NM Heptobilary Ductal Sys Imaging | $1,761.88 | $2,349.18 | — | 25% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| University of Cincinnati Medical Center Cincinnati, OH · (513) 584-1000 Hc Hepatobiliary Imaging | $2,100.60 | $3,501.00 | — | 40% | Jul 1, 2026 source file |
| West Chester Hospital West Chester, OH · (513) 298-7701 Hc Hepatobiliary Imaging | $2,100.60 | $3,501.00 | — | 40% | Jul 1, 2026 source file |
Inpatient: lowest $799.20, median $1,066.80, highest $2,100.60 — a 2.6× difference within the same market.
As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 15 facilities here, median $1,066.80 — that is the price to compare if you are not being admitted.
Cash or insurance?
At the one hospital here that publishes insurer rates for this code, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated. 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
A HIDA scan follows a radioactive tracer as the liver takes it up and releases it into the bile ducts, gallbladder and bowel. It is used to look for gallbladder inflammation, a blocked bile duct or a bile leak.
What the price covers
The hospital price usually covers the imaging. The tracer and the reading by a radiologist or nuclear medicine doctor are often billed separately. A scan that also measures how well the gallbladder empties after a medicine is given is billed under a different code (78227).
2 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 78226 ($1,280.00). Such a line is almost always a physician's fee billed separately, an assistant's share or a placeholder — a real charge, but not the price of the procedure itself.
| Children's Hospital Medical Center Cincinnati, OHChg Hepatobiliary Syst Imaging Including Gallbladder|By Specialist | $90.78 | file |
| Children's Hospital Medical Center Cincinnati, OHChg Hepatobiliary Syst Imaging Including Gallbladder|By Midlevel | $90.78 | file |