Lab tests CPT 82550 Inpatient — admitted to hospital

CK (creatine kinase) test cost in Merced, CA — inpatient

In Merced, CA, 2 hospitals list a cash price for creatine kinase (CK) blood test, total as an inpatient: from $186.95 to $243.00, with a median of $214.98. The lowest listed price is at Mercy Medical Center — $28.03 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $87.36 at 211 hospitals.

Cash prices at 2 facilities across 2 cities for code 82550, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 29, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 28, 2026 and Apr 1, 2026.

Lowest$186.95Mercy Medical Center

Median$214.98half of hospitals charge less

Highest$243.00in this market

Difference1.3×highest vs lowest

Where each hospital's price falls

Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Merced, CA.

median

Lowest $186.95Highest $281.19

Hospitals, cheapest first

Hospital	Cash price	List price	Insurers pay	Off list
Mercy Medical Center lowest Merced, CA · (209) 564-5000 CPK TOTAL File of Feb 28, 2026 · source file	$186.95	$363.00	$217.80–$341.22	48%
Memorial Hospital Los Banos Los Banos, CA · (209) 826-0591 HCHG CK TOTAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file	$243.00	$243.00	—	—
Mercy Medical Center Merced, CA · (209) 564-5000 SJM-CREATINE KINASE CPK File of Feb 28, 2026 · source file	$281.19	$546.00	$327.60–$513.24	49%

Hospital The hospital that published the price, its city and the line exactly as written in its price file.

Cash price The hospital's own price for a patient paying without insurance (“discounted cash” in its price file). Hospitals must publish it under federal law, 45 CFR 180.50. Call to confirm it before booking. More

List price The hospital's full chargemaster price (“gross charge”) before any discount. Almost nobody pays it; the gap to the cash price shows what the self-pay discount is worth. More

Insurers pay The lowest and highest rates this hospital has agreed with insurance plans for the same item, from its price file. If the cash price is below what your plan pays and you have not met your deductible, paying cash can cost you less. More

Off list How much lower the cash price is than the list price.

No cash discount This line's cash price equals the hospital's full list price. Many hospitals still reduce bills for uninsured patients: ask the billing office for its self-pay discount in writing. More

Inpatient: lowest $186.95, median $214.98, highest $243.00 — a 1.3× difference within the same market.

As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $214.98 — 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 and 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 creatine kinase (CK) test measures an enzyme released when muscle is damaged. It is used for muscle pain or weakness, after crush injuries or extreme exercise, and in people on statins with muscle symptoms.

What the price covers

The price usually covers running the test. The blood draw (36415) is often billed as a separate line.

1 row held back from this comparison

It is priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 82550 ($53.40). 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
Mercy Medical Center Merced, CARL-A-CKISO 20414A	$3.90	file

File Link to the hospital's own price file.