Lab tests CPT 83550 Inpatient — admitted to hospital

TIBC test cost in San Luis Obispo, CA — inpatient

In San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA, 1 hospital lists a cash price for iron-binding capacity (TIBC) test as an inpatient: from $154.45 to $154.45, with a median of $154.45. Across California, the median is $52.32 at 149 hospitals.

Cash prices at 1 facility for code 83550, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 27, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 28, 2026 and Feb 28, 2026.

Lowest$154.45Dignity Community Care
Median$154.45half pay less
Highest$154.45in this market
Difference1.0×highest vs lowest

Hospitals, cheapest first

HospitalCash price List priceInsurers payOff listFile date
Dignity Community Care San Luis Obispo, CA · (805) 543-5353 IRON BINDING CAPACITY $154.45 $394.00 $106.38–$386.12 61% Feb 28, 2026
source file

Inpatient: lowest $154.45, median $154.45, highest $154.45.

As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 1 facility here, median $10.59 — 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

The total iron-binding capacity test measures how much iron the blood can carry. It is ordered with serum iron (83540) to check for iron deficiency or overload.

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 83550 ($60.83). 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.

Dignity Community Care San Luis Obispo, CARL-A-FEIBC 20420B $1.84 file