CEA test cost in Bakersfield, CA
In Bakersfield-Delano, CA, 3 hospitals list a cash price for carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) test: from $38.54 to $163.87, with a median of $41.93. The lowest listed price is at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital — $3.39 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $106.38 at 189 hospitals.
Cash prices at 3 facilities for code 82378, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 27, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 28, 2026 and Feb 28, 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 Bakersfield-Delano, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bakersfield Memorial Hospital lowest Bakersfield, CA · (661) 327-1792 MH-CARCINOEMBRYONIC AG File of Feb 28, 2026 · source file | $38.54 | $105.00 | $18.96–$105.00 | 63% |
| Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield, CA · (661) 327-1792 CARCINOEMBRYONIC AG File of Feb 28, 2026 · source file | $41.48 | $113.00 | $18.96–$113.00 | 63% |
| Mercy Hospital Bakersfield, CA · (661) 632-5000 CARCINOEMBRYONIC AG File of Feb 28, 2026 · source file | $41.93 | $113.00 | $18.96–$113.00 | 63% |
| Mercy Hospital Bakersfield, CA · (661) 632-5000 MH-CARCINOEMBRYONIC AG File of Feb 28, 2026 · source file | $43.41 | $117.00 | $18.96–$117.00 | 63% |
| Good Samaritan Hospital Bakersfield, CA · (661) 215-7500 CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN (CEA) PROTEIN LEVEL source file | $163.87 | $234.10 | $16.85–$126.00 | 30% |
Outpatient: lowest $38.54, median $41.93, highest $163.87 — a 4.3× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $79.51. 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 2 of 3 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 CEA test measures a protein that can be high in colorectal and some other cancers. It is used to follow treatment and watch for recurrence, not to screen healthy people.
What the price covers
The price usually covers running the test. The blood draw (36415) is often billed as a separate line.
13 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 82378 ($109.74). 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.
| Hospital | Cash price | File |
|---|---|---|
| Kern Valley Healthcare District Mountain Mesa, CACarcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) protein level | $1.37 | file |
| Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield, CARL-A-CEA 80080 | $2.21 | file |
| Mercy Hospital Bakersfield, CARL-A-CEA 80080 | $2.23 | file |
| Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield, CARL-A-CEA FL 20742 | $3.67 | file |
| Mercy Hospital Bakersfield, CARL-A-CEA FL 20742 | $3.71 | file |
| Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield, CARL-Q-CEA PLEURAL FLUID | $6.17 | file |
| Mercy Hospital Bakersfield, CARL-Q-CEA PLEURAL FLUID | $6.24 | file |
| Ridgecrest Regional Hospital Ridgecrest, CACarcinoembryonic antigen | $6.52 | file |
| Ridgecrest Regional Hospital Ridgecrest, CACea (978) | $6.52 | file |
| Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield, CAH-CEA CRCNOEMBRYN 8049 | $9.18 | file |
| Mercy Hospital Bakersfield, CAH-CEA CRCNOEMBRYN 8049 | $9.28 | file |
| Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield, CARL-IP-CEA | $9.57 | file |
| Mercy Hospital Bakersfield, CARL-IP-CEA | $9.67 | file |