HIDA scan cost in Riverside, CA — inpatient
In Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA, 8 hospitals list a cash price for HIDA scan: nuclear imaging of the liver, bile ducts and gallbladder as an inpatient: from $464.16 to $4,009.29, with a median of $1,359.20. The lowest listed price is at St Mary Medical Center — $895.04 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $1,836.80 at 94 hospitals.
Cash prices at 8 facilities across 6 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 Sep 2, 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 Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Mary Medical Center lowest Apple Valley, CA · (760) 242-2311 HC NM HEPATOBILIARY SYSTEM | $464.16 | $967.00 | — | 52% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Loma Linda University Medical Center Loma Linda, CA · (909) 558-4000 HC GALLBLDR/LIVER FUNC | $1,068.75 | $2,375.00 | $475.00–$2,137.50 | 55% | Sep 2, 2026 source file |
| Loma Linda University Medical Center - Murrieta Murrieta, CA · (951) 290-4000 HC GALLBLDR/LIVER FUNC | $1,068.75 | $2,375.00 | $429.88–$1,781.25 | 55% | Sep 2, 2026 source file |
| Loma Linda University Childrens Hospital Loma Linda, CA · (909) 558-8000 HC GALLBLDR/LIVER FUNC | $1,184.40 | $2,632.00 | $526.40–$2,237.20 | 55% | Sep 2, 2026 source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Moreno Valley Moreno Valley, CA · (951) 251-6530 HEPATOBILIARY SYST IMAGING INCLUDING GALLBLADDER | $1,534.00 | $2,950.00 | $365.00–$1,085.00 | 48% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Riverside Riverside, CA · (951) 353-2000 HEPATOBILIARY SYST IMAGING INCLUDING GALLBLADDER | $1,534.00 | $2,950.00 | $365.00–$1,085.00 | 48% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Fontana Fontana, CA · (909) 427-5000 HEPATOBILIARY SYST IMAGING INCLUDING GALLBLADDER | $1,534.00 | $2,950.00 | $365.00–$1,085.00 | 48% | — source file |
| Riverside University Medical Center Moreno Valley, CA · (951) 486-4000 HC Gallbldr/Liver Func | $4,009.29 | $4,009.29 | $261.91–$4,009.29 | — | — source file |
| Riverside University Medical Center Moreno Valley, CA · (951) 486-4000 HC Gallbldr/Liver Func | $4,009.29 | $4,009.29 | $261.91–$4,009.29 | — | — source file |
Inpatient: lowest $464.16, median $1,359.20, highest $4,009.29 — a 8.6× difference within the same market.
As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 13 facilities here, median $1,068.75 — that is the price to compare if you are not being admitted.
Cash or insurance?
At 3 of 7 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
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).