Blood culture cost in Riverside, CA
In Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA, 22 hospitals list a cash price for blood culture for bacteria: from $14.39 to $1,481.00, with a median of $222.56. The lowest listed price is at Community Hospital of San Bernardino — $208.17 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $272.16 at 200 hospitals.
- The median here, $222.56, is 93% above the US median of $115.50.
- That is 21.6× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($10.32).
- Riverside, CA has the lowest median of 5 metro areas in California with at least 10 hospitals pricing this code.
- 6 of 22 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 22 facilities across 18 cities for code 87040, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Nov 1, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jan 14, 2026 and Sep 30, 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 Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Community Hospital of San Bernardino lowest San Bernardino, CA · (909) 887-6333 NH-CULT BLOOD File of Sep 30, 2026 · source file | $14.39 | $37.00 | $7.40–$64.40 | 61% |
| Palo Verde Hospital Blythe, CA · (760) 922-4115 Blood Culture, Routine LC File of Jul 1, 2026 · source file | $20.62 | $27.50 | — | 25% |
| San Gorgonio Memorial Hospital Banning, CA · (951) 769-2101 BLOOD CULTURE FOR BACTERIA File of May 20, 2026 · source file | $21.83 | $109.14 | $9.80–$109.14 | 80% |
| Mountains Community Hospital Lake Arrowhead, CA · (909) 336-3651 BLOOD CULTURE File of Jan 14, 2026 · source file | $26.94 | $67.34 | $30.30–$57.24 | 60% |
| San Gorgonio Memorial Hospital Banning, CA · (951) 769-2101 BACTERIAL BLOOD CULTURE File of May 20, 2026 · source file | $42.18 | $210.88 | $9.80–$210.88 | 80% |
| St Bernardine Medical Center San Bernardino, CA · (909) 883-8711 CULT BLOOD File of Sep 30, 2026 · source file | $44.44 | $135.00 | $8.98–$135.00 | 67% |
| Mountains Community Hospital Lake Arrowhead, CA · (909) 336-3651 BLOOD CULTURE 1+3 more lines at this price File of Jan 14, 2026 · source file | $68.80 | $172.00 | $77.40–$146.20 | 60% |
| Community Hospital of San Bernardino San Bernardino, CA · (909) 887-6333 CULT BLOOD File of Sep 30, 2026 · source file | $78.16 | $201.00 | $10.32–$201.00 | 61% |
| St Mary Medical Center Apple Valley, CA · (760) 242-2311 HC BLOOD CULTURE FOR BACTERIA File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $86.88 | $181.00 | — | 52% |
| Loma Linda University Medical Center - Murrieta Murrieta, CA · (951) 290-4000 HC CULTURE BLOOD File of Sep 2, 2026 · source file | $175.50 | $390.00 | $10.32–$292.50 | 55% |
| Loma Linda University Medical Center Loma Linda, CA · (909) 558-4000 HC CULTURE BLOOD File of Sep 2, 2026 · source file | $175.50 | $390.00 | $8.36–$351.00 | 55% |
| Loma Linda University Childrens Hospital Loma Linda, CA · (909) 558-8000 HC CULTURE BLOOD File of Sep 2, 2026 · source file | $175.50 | $390.00 | $8.36–$331.50 | 55% |
| San Antonio Regional Hospital Upland, CA · (909) 985-2811 Bacterial blood culture File of Apr 2, 2026 · source file | $185.00 | $1,068.00 | $8.26–$1,962.45 | 83% |
| Redlands Community Hospital Redlands, CA · (909) 335-5500 Bacterial blood culture File of Jun 19, 2026 · source file | $207.12 | $863.00 | $8.77–$863.00 | 76% |
| San Bernardino County Colton, CA · (909) 580-1000 HC CULTURE; BLOOD File of Feb 25, 2026 · source file | $238.00 | $238.00 | $8.98–$172.55 | — |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Riverside Riverside, CA · (951) 353-2000 CULTURE BACTERIAL BLOOD AEROBIC W/ID ISOLATES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $279.76 | $538.00 | $7.00–$20.00 | 48% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Fontana Fontana, CA · (909) 427-5000 CULTURE BACTERIAL BLOOD AEROBIC W/ID ISOLATES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $279.76 | $538.00 | $7.00–$20.00 | 48% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Moreno Valley Moreno Valley, CA · (951) 251-6530 CULTURE BACTERIAL BLOOD AEROBIC W/ID ISOLATES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $279.76 | $538.00 | $7.00–$20.00 | 48% |
| Kaiser Ontario Medical Center Campus Ontario, CA · (909) 427-5000 CULTURE BACTERIAL BLOOD AEROBIC W/ID ISOLATES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $279.76 | $538.00 | $7.00–$20.00 | 48% |
| Victor Valley Global Medical Center Victorville, CA · (760) 245-8691 VG-BLOOD CULTURE File of May 13, 2026 · source file | $322.00 | $322.00 | $6.32–$322.00 | — |
| Barstow Community Hospital Barstow, CA · (760) 256-1761 Bacterial blood culture File of Sep 17, 2026 · source file | $332.92 | $554.86 | $11.83–$443.89 | 40% |
| Hemet Global Medical Center Hemet, CA · (951) 652-2811 LAB CULTURE BLOOD File of Jun 15, 2026 · source file | $410.00 | $410.00 | $8.98–$410.00 | — |
| Menifee Global Medical Center Menifee, CA · (951) 679-8888 LAB CULTURE BLOOD File of May 20, 2026 · source file | $410.00 | $410.00 | $8.98–$410.00 | — |
| Riverside University Medical Center Moreno Valley, CA · (951) 486-4000 HC Blood Culture for Bacteria+1 more line at this price File of Mar 30, 2026 · source file | $693.56 | $693.56 | $7.18–$693.56 | — |
| Riverside Community Hospital Riverside, CA · (951) 788-3000 CULTURE BLOOD+1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $1,481.00 | $1,481.00 | $10.32–$1,332.90 | — |
Outpatient: lowest $14.39, median $222.56, highest $1,481.00 — a 102.9× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 16 facilities here, median $258.88. 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 10 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 blood culture is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Blood culture explained.
12 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 87040 ($120.61). 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Eisenhower Medical Center Rancho Mirage, CAHC Culture Blood Aerobic Only | $5.11 | file |
| Eisenhower Medical Center Rancho Mirage, CAHC Culture Bld Aerobic+Anaerobic | $5.11 | file |
| Mountains Community Hospital Lake Arrowhead, CACULTURE 2 BLOOD | $6.80 | file |
| Mountains Community Hospital Lake Arrowhead, CABD CLOOD CULTURE 1 | $6.80 | file |
| Mountains Community Hospital Lake Arrowhead, CABLOOD CULTURE PEDS | $6.80 | file |
| Mountains Community Hospital Lake Arrowhead, CACULTURE 1 BLOOD | $6.80 | file |
| Mountains Community Hospital Lake Arrowhead, CABD BLOOD CULTURE 2 | $6.80 | file |
| Desert Valley Hospital Victorville, CACULT BLOOD | $10.00 | file |
| Chino Valley Medical Center Chino, CAHc Blood Culture For Bacteria | $10.00 | file |
| Montclair Hospital Medical Center Montclair, CAHc Blood Culture For Bacteria | $10.00 | file |
| Desert Valley Hospital Victorville, CABLOOD CULTURE ROUTINE LABCORP | $10.00 | file |
| St Bernardine Medical Center San Bernardino, CANH-CULT BLOOD | $10.54 | file |