1-hour glucose test cost in Waterloo, IA
In Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, 3 hospitals list a cash price for Glucose challenge test (1-hour glucose after a sugar drink): from $12.00 to $111.80, with a median of $44.85. The lowest listed price is at Allen Memorial Hospital Corporation — $32.85 less than the median here. Across Iowa, the median is $30.14 at 36 hospitals.
Cash prices at 3 facilities across 2 cities for code 82950, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jan 28, 2026 and Mar 31, 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 Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allen Memorial Hospital Corporation lowest Waterloo, IA CHG GLUCOSE TEST | $12.00 | $15.00 | $4.75–$9.58 | 20% | Jan 28, 2026 source file |
| Allen Memorial Hospital Corporation Waterloo, IA HC GLUCOSE; POST GLUCOSE DOSE | $33.57 | $41.96 | $4.75–$27.15 | 20% | Jan 28, 2026 source file |
| Covenant Medical Center Inc Waterloo, IA HC Glucose 1 Hr Post Dose | $44.85 | $69.00 | $4.60–$69.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Covenant Medical Center Inc Waterloo, IA HC Glucose 2 Hr Post Dose | $44.85 | $69.00 | $4.60–$69.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Sartori Memorial Hospital Inc Cedar Falls, IA HC Glucose 1 Hr Post Dose | $111.80 | $172.00 | $4.60–$172.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Sartori Memorial Hospital Inc Cedar Falls, IA HC Glucose 2 Hr Post Dose | $111.80 | $172.00 | $4.60–$172.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Covenant Medical Center Inc Waterloo, IA HC Glucose 1 Hr Post Dose | $1,917.00 | — | $4.60–$106.81 | — | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $12.00, median $44.85, highest $111.80 — a 9.3× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 3 facilities here, median $44.85. 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
The glucose challenge test measures blood sugar one hour after a sugar drink. It is the usual first screening test for gestational diabetes at 24 to 28 weeks of pregnancy.
What the price covers
The price usually covers running the test. The blood draw (36415) is often billed as a separate line.