PTH test cost in Baltimore, MD
In Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD, 2 hospitals list a cash price for parathyroid hormone (PTH) blood test: from $48.06 to $55.42, with a median of $51.74. The lowest listed price is at Mercy Medical Center — $3.68 less than the median here. Across Maryland, the median is $46.95 at 5 hospitals.
Cash prices at 2 facilities for code 83970, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 22, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between — and —.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercy Medical Center lowest Baltimore, MD · (410) 332-9237 HC ASSAY OF PARATHORMONE REF | $48.06 | $49.04 | $49.04–$48.06 | 2% | — source file |
| Mercy Medical Center lowest Baltimore, MD · (410) 332-9237 HC ASSAY OF PARATHORMONE | $48.06 | $49.04 | $49.04–$48.06 | 2% | — source file |
| Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital Baltimore, MD · (410) 578-5050 PARATHYROID HORMONE INT | $55.42 | $56.55 | $55.42–$56.55 | 2% | — source file |
| Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital Baltimore, MD · (410) 578-5050 R PARATHYROID HORMONE | $55.42 | $56.55 | $55.42–$56.55 | 2% | — source file |
Outpatient: lowest $48.06, median $51.74, highest $55.42 — a 1.2× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $51.74. 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 1 of 2 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at 1 it is 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 PTH test measures parathyroid hormone, which controls calcium in the blood. It is ordered when calcium is high or low, in kidney disease, and in some people with kidney stones or osteoporosis.
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 83970 ($168.28). 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.
| Greater Baltimore Medical Center Towson, MDHC Pth Intact | $8.66 | file |