Herpes (HSV-2) blood test cost in San Diego, CA
In San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA, 12 hospitals list a cash price for herpes blood test, HSV-2 antibody: from $19.00 to $133.10, with a median of $93.75. The lowest listed price is at Paradise Valley Hospital — $74.75 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $23.50 at 182 hospitals.
- The median here, $93.75, is 42% above the US median of $66.08.
- That is 4.8× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($19.35).
- San Diego, CA ranks 4th of 4 metro areas in California by median, cheapest first.
- Every hospital here lists a cash price below its full list price.
Cash prices at 12 facilities across 8 cities for code 86696, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 29, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 and Sep 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 San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paradise Valley Hospital lowest National City, CA · (619) 470-4321 HERPES SIMP AB LC 828842+10 more lines at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $19.00 | $24.79 | $5.81–$96.75 | 23% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Marcos San Marcos, CA · (760) 528-6295 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $87.36 | $168.00 | $13.00–$40.00 | 48% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Diego - Zion San Diego, CA · (619) 528-5000 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $87.36 | $168.00 | $13.00–$40.00 | 48% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Diego - Clairemont Mesa San Diego, CA · (619) 528-5000 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $87.36 | $168.00 | $13.00–$40.00 | 48% |
| Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center Chula Vista, CA · (619) 502-5800 HC HERPES SIMPLEX TEST TYPE 2 - HSV 2 IGG ANTIBODY File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $93.75 | $125.00 | $1.00–$122.50 | 25% |
| Grossmont Hospital La Mesa, CA · (619) 465-0711 HC HERPES SIMPLEX TEST TYPE 2 - HSV 2 IGG ANTIBODY File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $93.75 | $125.00 | $1.00–$625.89 | 25% |
| Sharp Memorial Hospital San Diego, CA · (858) 939-3400 HC HERPES SIMPLEX TEST TYPE 2 - HSV 2 IGG ANTIBODY File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $93.75 | $125.00 | $1.00–$938.84 | 25% |
| Sharp Coronado Hospital and Healthcare Center Coronado, CA · (619) 435-6251 HC HERPES SIMPLEX TEST TYPE 2 - HSV 2 IGG ANTIBODY File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $93.75 | $125.00 | $1.30–$122.50 | 25% |
| UC San Diego Medical Center San Diego, CA · (619) 543-6222 Analysis For Antibody To Herpes Simplex Virus, Type 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $94.60 | $172.00 | $17.20–$232.20 | 45% |
| Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego San Diego, CA · (858) 576-1700 Rch Scrmer Cv-Herpes Simplex Type 2+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $126.75 | $169.00 | — | 25% |
| Palomar Medical Center Escondido Escondido, CA Herpes Simplex 2 IgG File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $133.10 | $221.84 | — | 40% |
| Palomar Medical Center Poway Poway, CA · (858) 485-6511 Herpes Simplex 2 IgG File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $133.10 | $221.84 | — | 40% |
| Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego San Diego, CA · (858) 576-1700 Rch Herpes Simplex Type 2 Ab+3 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $213.00 | $284.00 | — | 25% |
Outpatient: lowest $19.00, median $93.75, highest $133.10 — a 7.0× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 11 facilities here, median $93.75. 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 6 of 9 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at none is it 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 herpes (HSV-2) blood test is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Herpes (HSV-2) blood test explained.
4 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 86696 ($58.50). 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center Chula Vista, CAHC HERPES SIMPLEX TYPE 2 AB | $4.50 | file |
| Sharp Coronado Hospital and Healthcare Center Coronado, CAHC HERPES SIMPLEX TYPE 2 AB | $4.50 | file |
| Sharp Memorial Hospital San Diego, CAHC HERPES SIMPLEX TYPE 2 AB | $4.50 | file |
| Grossmont Hospital La Mesa, CAHC HERPES SIMPLEX TYPE 2 AB | $4.50 | file |