Sed rate (ESR) cost in Pittsburgh, PA
In Pittsburgh, PA, 20 hospitals list a cash price for sed rate (ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate): from $11.13 to $110.40, with a median of $18.12. The lowest listed price is at UPMC Washington — $6.99 less than the median here. Across Pennsylvania, the median is $21.63 at 90 hospitals.
- The median here, $18.12, is 52% below the US median of $38.00.
- That is 6.7× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($2.70).
- Pittsburgh, PA has the lowest median of 2 metro areas in Pennsylvania with at least 10 hospitals pricing this code.
- Every hospital here lists a cash price below its full list price.
Cash prices at 20 facilities across 12 cities for code 85652, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Nov 10, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Dec 17, 2025 and Oct 28, 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 Pittsburgh, PA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UPMC Washington lowest Washington, PA · (724) 225-7000 ESR- AUTOMATED File of Mar 6, 2026 · source file | $11.13 | $15.90 | $1.89–$11.45 | 30% |
| Excela Health Latrobe Hospital Latrobe, PA · (724) 832-4000 SED RATE File of Dec 17, 2025 · source file | $16.20 | $27.00 | $2.51–$29.96 | 40% |
| Excela Health Westmoreland Regional Hospital Greeensburg, PA · (724) 832-4000 SED RATE File of Dec 17, 2025 · source file | $16.20 | $27.00 | $2.51–$85.00 | 40% |
| Excela Health - Frick Hospital Mt Plesant, PA · (724) 547-1500 SED RATE File of Dec 17, 2025 · source file | $16.20 | $27.00 | $106.40 | 40% |
| Allegheny Valley Hospital Natrona Heights, PA · (412) 224-5100 HC SEDIMENTATION RATE AUTO File of Oct 28, 2026 · source file | $16.94 | $22.00 | $1.31–$7.35 | 23% |
| Canonsburg General Hospital Canonsburg, PA · (724) 745-6100 HC SEDIMENTATION RATE AUTO File of Oct 28, 2026 · source file | $17.16 | $22.00 | $1.31–$7.35 | 22% |
| Forbes Hospital Monroeville, PA · (412) 858-2000 HC SEDIMENTATION RATE AUTO File of Oct 28, 2026 · source file | $17.16 | $22.00 | $1.31–$33.00 | 22% |
| West Penn Hospital Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 578-5000 HC SEDIMENTATION RATE AUTO File of Oct 28, 2026 · source file | $17.52 | $24.00 | $1.35–$8.94 | 27% |
| UPMC Jameson New Castle, PA · (724) 656-4100 SED RATE AUTOMATED File of Mar 6, 2026 · source file | $18.00 | $30.00 | $2.67–$38.14 | 40% |
| Uniontown Hospital Uniontown, PA · (724) 430-5000 RED BLOOD CELL SEDIMENTATION RATE; TO DETECT INFLAMMATION; AUTOMATED File of Jul 9, 2026 · source file | $18.00 | $36.00 | $2.55–$171.55 | 50% |
| Allegheny General Hospital Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 359-3131 HC SEDIMENTATION RATE AUTO File of Oct 28, 2026 · source file | $18.24 | $24.00 | $1.35–$9.02 | 24% |
| Uniontown Hospital Uniontown, PA · (724) 430-5000 RBC SED RATE AUTOMATED File of Jul 9, 2026 · source file | $18.50 | $37.00 | $2.55–$171.55 | 50% |
| Jefferson Regional Medical Center Jefferson Hills, PA · (412) 469-5000 HC SEDIMENTATION RATE AUTO File of Oct 28, 2026 · source file | $18.63 | $23.00 | $1.31–$7.35 | 19% |
| Highlands Hospital Connellsville, PA · (724) 628-1500 .SED RATE (POLYMED CO)+1 more line at this price File of Feb 2, 2026 · source file | $32.40 | $54.00 | $18.20–$42.12 | 40% |
| UPMC St Margaret Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 784-4000 SED RATE AUTOMATED File of Mar 6, 2026 · source file | $45.00 | $75.00 | $2.33–$78.11 | 40% |
| UPMC Presbyterian Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 647-2345 SED RATE AUTOMATED File of Mar 6, 2026 · source file | $51.00 | $85.00 | $2.67–$74.68 | 40% |
| UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 641-4010 HC SED RATE RBC AUTO File of Mar 6, 2026 · source file | $52.80 | $88.00 | $2.53–$80.96 | 40% |
| UPMC Childrens Hospital of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 692-5325 SED RATE AUTOMATED File of Mar 6, 2026 · source file | $63.60 | $106.00 | $2.41–$95.40 | 40% |
| UPMC Mercy Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 232-8111 SED RATE AUTOMATED File of Mar 6, 2026 · source file | $69.60 | $116.00 | $2.25–$104.40 | 40% |
| UPMC East Monroeville, PA · (412) 357-3000 SED RATE AUTOMATED File of Mar 6, 2026 · source file | $85.20 | $142.00 | $2.67–$113.60 | 40% |
| UPMC Passavant - McCandless Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 367-6700 HC SED RATE RBC AUTO File of Mar 7, 2026 · source file | $110.40 | $184.00 | $2.51–$156.40 | 40% |
Outpatient: lowest $11.13, median $18.12, highest $110.40 — a 9.9× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 21 facilities here, median $18.63. 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 15 of 20 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 sed rate (ESR) is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Sed rate (ESR) explained.
2 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 85652 ($36.80). 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Advanced Surgical Hospital Washington, PAWESTERGREN SED RATE | $2.70 | file |
| Advanced Surgical Hospital Washington, PASED RATE | $2.70 | file |