Herpes (HSV-2) blood test cost in San Francisco, CA
In San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA, 25 hospitals list a cash price for herpes blood test, HSV-2 antibody: from $6.81 to $90.00, with a median of $24.00. The lowest listed price is at St. Rose Hospital — $17.19 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $23.50 at 182 hospitals.
- The median here, $24.00, is 64% below the US median of $66.08.
- That is 1.2× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($19.35).
- San Francisco, CA ranks 3rd of 4 metro areas in California by median, cheapest first.
- 12 of 25 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 25 facilities across 18 cities for code 86696, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Oct 31, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 23, 2026 and Jul 22, 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 Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Rose Hospital lowest Hayward, CA · (510) 782-6200 LC-HSV TYPE 2 AB IGG File of Feb 23, 2026 · source file | $6.81 | $22.70 | $11.35–$48.38 | 70% |
| Stanford Health Care Tri-Valley Pleasanton, CA · (925) 847-3000 HC 6942 Herpes Select 2 Igg File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $7.95 | $19.88 | — | 60% |
| St. Rose Hospital Hayward, CA · (510) 782-6200 LC HERPES SIMPLEX TYPE 2 TEST File of Feb 23, 2026 · source file | $8.51 | $28.35 | $14.18–$48.38 | 70% |
| MarinHealth Medical Center Greenbrae, CA · (415) 925-7900 HERPES SIMPLEX TYPE 2 TEST File of Mar 26, 2026 · source file | $12.22 | $20.37 | $19.35–$2,330.00 | 40% |
| Mills Health Center San Mateo, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG HSV 2 AB File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $23.00 | $23.00 | — | — |
| Mills-Peninsula Medical Center Burlingame, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG HSV 2 AB File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $23.00 | $23.00 | — | — |
| Sutter Delta Medical Center Antioch, CA · (925) 779-7200 HCHG CORE HSV 2 AB IGG TYPE SPECIFIC+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $24.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center-Summit Campus-Hawthorne Oakland, CA · (510) 655-4000 HCHG CORE HSV 2 AB IGG TYPE SPECIFIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $24.00 | — | — |
| Novato Community Hospital Novato, CA · (415) 209-1300 HCHG CORE HSV 2 AB IGG TYPE SPECIFIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $24.00 | — | — |
| Mills Health Center San Mateo, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG CORE HSV 2 AB IGG TYPE SPECIFIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $24.00 | — | — |
| Mills-Peninsula Medical Center Burlingame, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG CORE HSV 2 AB IGG TYPE SPECIFIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $24.00 | — | — |
| Eden Medical Center Castro Valley, CA · (510) 537-1234 HCHG CORE HSV 2 AB IGG TYPE SPECIFIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $24.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center Oakland, CA · (510) 655-4000 HCHG CORE HSV 2 AB IGG TYPE SPECIFIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $24.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Alta Bates Camp Berkeley, CA · (510) 204-4444 HCHG CORE HSV 2 AB IGG TYPE SPECIFIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $24.00 | — | — |
| California Pacific Medical Ctr-Davies Campus Hospital San Francisco, CA · (415) 600-6000 HCHG CORE HSV 2 AB IGG TYPE SPECIFIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $24.00 | — | — |
| California Pacific Medical Center- Van Ness Campus San Francisco, CA · (415) 600-6000 HCHG CORE HSV 2 AB IGG TYPE SPECIFIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $24.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Herrick Campus Berkeley, CA · (510) 204-4444 HCHG CORE HSV 2 AB IGG TYPE SPECIFIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $24.00 | — | — |
| Stanford Health Care Tri-Valley Pleasanton, CA · (925) 847-3000 HC Hsvigg Hsv Ab Type 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $46.40 | $116.00 | — | 60% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Francisco San Francisco, CA · (415) 833-2646 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $66.08 | $118.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Walnut Creek Walnut Creek, CA · (925) 295-4000 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $66.08 | $118.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Redwood City Redwood City, CA · (650) 299-2000 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $66.08 | $118.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - South San Francisco South San Francisco, CA · (650) 742-3200 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $66.08 | $118.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Leandro San Leandro, CA · (510) 454-1000 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $66.08 | $118.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Antioch Antioch, CA · (925) 813-6500 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $66.08 | $118.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Oakland/Richmond Oakland, CA · (510) 752-1000 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $66.08 | $118.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Fremont Fremont, CA · (510) 784-4000 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $66.08 | $118.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Fnd Hospital - Richmond Campus Richmond, CA · (510) 752-1000 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $66.08 | $118.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Rafael San Rafael, CA · (415) 444-2000 ANTIBODY HERPES SMPLX TYPE 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $66.08 | $118.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% |
| Chinese Hospital San Francisco, CA · (415) 677-2480 Analysis for antibody to Herpes simplex virus, type 2 File of Jul 22, 2026 · source file | $90.00 | $90.00 | $17.42–$260.90 | — |
Outpatient: lowest $6.81, median $24.00, highest $90.00 — a 13.2× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 23 facilities here, median $24.00. 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 3 of 13 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at 2 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 herpes (HSV-2) blood test is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Herpes (HSV-2) blood test explained.
2 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 |
|---|---|---|
| St. Rose Hospital Hayward, CALC-HERPES SIMPLEX TYPE 2 TEST | $3.18 | file |
| Sequoia Hospital Redwood City, CARL-A-HERP II S 50294 | $4.61 | file |