Sed rate (ESR) cost in Cincinnati, OH — inpatient
In Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN, 8 hospitals list a cash price for sed rate (ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate) as an inpatient: from $25.50 to $37.20, with a median of $37.20. The lowest listed price is at Children's Hospital Medical Center — $11.70 less than the median here. Across Ohio, the median is $30.31 at 86 hospitals.
Cash prices at 8 facilities across 4 cities for code 85652, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jul 1, 2026 and Jul 1, 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 Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Children's Hospital Medical Center lowest Cincinnati, OH · (513) 636-3333 Hb Esr-Auto | $25.50 | $50.00 | $24.00–$50.00 | 49% | — source file |
| West Chester Hospital West Chester, OH · (513) 298-7701 Hc Sedimentation Rate (Esr) | $28.80 | $48.00 | — | 40% | Jul 1, 2026 source file |
| University of Cincinnati Medical Center Cincinnati, OH · (513) 584-1000 Hc Sedimentation Rate (Esr) | $28.80 | $48.00 | — | 40% | Jul 1, 2026 source file |
| Mercy Health Clermont Hospital Batavia, OH · (513) 732-8278 HC Sed Rate | $37.20 | $62.00 | — | 40% | — source file |
| Mercy Health West Hospital Cincinnati, OH · (513) 215-5000 HC Sed Rate | $37.20 | $62.00 | — | 40% | — source file |
| Mercy Health Kings Mills Hospital Mason, OH · (513) 637-9999 HC Sed Rate | $37.20 | $62.00 | — | 40% | — source file |
| The Jewish Hospital-Mercy Health Cincinnati, OH · (513) 686-3000 HC Sed Rate | $37.20 | $62.00 | — | 40% | — source file |
| Mercy Health Anderson Hospital Cincinnati, OH · (513) 624-4500 HC Sed Rate | $37.20 | $62.00 | — | 40% | — source file |
Inpatient: lowest $25.50, median $37.20, highest $37.20 — a 1.5× difference within the same market.
As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 11 facilities here, median $28.80 — 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 sed rate measures how quickly red blood cells settle in a tube. A fast rate is a general sign of inflammation; it is used for conditions such as giant cell arteritis and polymyalgia rheumatica and to follow them.
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 85652 ($33.00). 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.
| The Craig and Frances Lindner Center of Hope Mason, OHHC SEDIMENTATION RATE (ESR) | $2.00 | file |