Lab tests CPT 86480 Inpatient — admitted to hospital

TB blood test (IGRA) cost in New Orleans, LA — inpatient

In New Orleans-Metairie, LA, 6 hospitals list a cash price for TB blood test measuring immune response (IGRA, gamma interferon) as an inpatient: from $60.20 to $359.01, with a median of $114.81. The lowest listed price is at Ochsner Medical Center – Kenner — $54.61 less than the median here. Across Louisiana, the median is $119.72 at 56 hospitals.

Cash prices at 6 facilities across 5 cities for code 86480, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 27, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between — and —.

Lowest$60.20Ochsner Medical Center – Kenner
Median$114.81half of hospitals charge less
Highest$359.01in this market
Difference6.0×highest vs lowest

Where each hospital's price falls

Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in New Orleans-Metairie, LA.

median
Lowest $60.20Highest $359.01

Hospitals, cheapest first

HospitalCash priceList priceInsurers payOff list
Ochsner Medical Center – Kenner lowest Kenner, LA · (504) 464-8065 HC QUANTIFERON GOLD TB TEST source file $60.20 $215.00 — 72%
St Bernard Parish Hospital Chalmette, LA · (504) 826-9500 HC QUANTIFERON GOLD TB TEST source file $71.36 $223.00 — 68%
Ochsner Clinic Foundation New Orleans, LA · (504) 842-3000 HC QUANTIFERON GOLD TB TEST source file $97.90 $445.00 — 78%
The Ochsner West Campus Extended Care Hospital Jefferson, LA HC QUANTIFERON GOLD TB TEST source file $131.72 $356.00 — 63%
St Charles Parish Hospital Luling, LA · (985) 785-3644 HC QUANTIFERON GOLD TB TEST source file $155.25 $575.00 — 73%
St Charles Surgical Hospital New Orleans, LA · (504) 529-6600 TB CELL MED IM AG GAM INT source file $359.01 $1,018.00 $60.74–$466.24 65%
Hospital The hospital that published the price, its city and the line exactly as written in its price file.
Cash price The hospital's own price for a patient paying without insurance (“discounted cash” in its price file). Hospitals must publish it under federal law, 45 CFR 180.50. Call to confirm it before booking. More
List price The hospital's full chargemaster price (“gross charge”) before any discount. Almost nobody pays it; the gap to the cash price shows what the self-pay discount is worth. More
Insurers pay The lowest and highest rates this hospital has agreed with insurance plans for the same item, from its price file. If the cash price is below what your plan pays and you have not met your deductible, paying cash can cost you less. More
Off list How much lower the cash price is than the list price.

Inpatient: lowest $60.20, median $114.81, highest $359.01 — a 6.0× difference within the same market.

As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 13 facilities here, median $67.90 — 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

This blood test, known as an interferon-gamma release assay (IGRA), such as QuantiFERON, checks whether the immune system reacts to tuberculosis proteins. It is used to screen for TB infection, often for work, school or immigration, and replaces the skin test for many people.

What the price covers

The price usually covers the lab test only. The blood draw is often billed separately, and a chest X-ray after a positive result has its own charge.