Blood culture cost in Buffalo, NY — inpatient
In Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY, 2 hospitals list a cash price for blood culture for bacteria as an inpatient: from $43.99 to $156.96, with a median of $100.48. The lowest listed price is at Erie County Medical Center — $56.49 less than the median here. Across New York, the median is $53.22 at 61 hospitals.
Cash prices at 2 facilities for code 87040, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 22, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 and Aug 25, 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 Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Erie County Medical Center lowest Buffalo, NY · (716) 898-3936 BLOOD CULTURE AEROBIC | $43.99 | $115.83 | $7.74–$104.24 | 62% | Aug 25, 2026 source file |
| Erie County Medical Center lowest Buffalo, NY · (716) 898-3936 BLOOD CULTURE ANAEROBIC | $43.99 | $115.83 | $7.74–$104.24 | 62% | Aug 25, 2026 source file |
| Roswell Park Cancer Institute Buffalo, NY Culture Blood | $156.96 | $156.96 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Roswell Park Cancer Institute Buffalo, NY Sterility Culture (Bld Seg) | $156.96 | $156.96 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
Inpatient: lowest $43.99, median $100.48, highest $156.96 — a 3.6× difference within the same market.
As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 3 facilities here, median $43.99 — 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
A blood culture checks for bacteria or yeast in the blood. It is ordered for fever with signs of a serious infection, such as sepsis.
What the price covers
The price is usually for one culture set. The blood draw (36415) is often billed as a separate line.
3 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 87040 ($100.75). 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.
| Mount St. Mary's Hospital Lewiston, NYHC Culture, Blood, Anaerobic | $8.15 | file |
| Sisters of Charity Hospital Buffalo, NYHC Culture, Blood, Anaerobic | $8.15 | file |
| Mercy Hospital of Buffalo Buffalo, NYHC Culture, Blood, Anaerobic | $8.15 | file |