Lab tests CPT 87040 Inpatient — admitted to hospital

Blood culture cost in Russellville, AL — inpatient

In Russellville, AL, 2 hospitals list a cash price for blood culture for bacteria as an inpatient: from $86.97 to $1,399.50, with a median of $743.24. The lowest listed price is at Russellville Hospital — $656.27 less than the median here. Across Alabama, the median is $103.41 at 37 hospitals.

Cash prices at 2 facilities across 2 cities for code 87040, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 27, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jul 31, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026.

Lowest$86.97Russellville Hospital
Median$743.24half pay less
Highest$1,399.50in this market
Difference16.1×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 Russellville, AL.

median
Lowest $86.97Highest $1,399.50

Hospitals, cheapest first

HospitalCash price List priceInsurers payOff listFile date
Russellville Hospital lowest Russellville, AL · (256) 332-1611 CULTURE BLOOD $86.97 $334.50 $7.22–$200.70 74% Jul 31, 2026
source file
Red Bay Hospital Red Bay, AL · (256) 356-9532 OR-SCRW FEM NCK 105MM ANTI-ROT $1,399.50 $1,399.50 $10.20–$1,091.61 — —
source file

Inpatient: lowest $86.97, median $743.24, highest $1,399.50 — a 16.1× difference within the same market.

As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $743.24 — that is the price to compare if you are not being admitted.

Cash or insurance?

At 1 of 2 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 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.