Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Bangor, ME
In Bangor, ME, 4 hospitals list a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid): from $14.70 to $50.88, with a median of $38.43. The lowest listed price is at Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center — $23.73 less than the median here. Across Maine, the median is $61.51 at 28 hospitals.
Cash prices at 4 facilities across 3 cities for code 87070, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 27, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between — and —.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Bangor, ME.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center lowest Bangor, ME · (207) 973-7000 GENITAL CULTURE | $14.70 | $70.00 | $35.63–$56.56 | 79% | — source file |
| Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center lowest Bangor, ME · (207) 973-7000 CULTURE, ROUTINE/LAB | $14.70 | $70.00 | $35.63–$56.56 | 79% | — source file |
| Northern Light Acadia Hospital Bangor, ME · (207) 973-6100 AEROBIC CULTURE ROUT | $30.96 | $86.00 | $47.13–$83.42 | 64% | — source file |
| Northern Light Acadia Hospital Bangor, ME · (207) 973-6100 GENITAL CULTURE | $30.96 | $86.00 | $47.13–$83.42 | 64% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 CULTURE STREP B - OBS | $45.90 | $51.00 | $21.99–$51.00 | 10% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Urogenital Marlboro TC 4558X | $50.88 | $63.60 | $8.45–$61.06 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Legionella Culture & GS C LEGION ALI_ | $63.69 | $79.61 | $8.45–$76.43 | 20% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 CULTURE NASOPHARYNGEAL | $65.70 | $73.00 | $31.48–$70.02 | 10% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture MRSA Nares ALI | $67.27 | $84.09 | $8.45–$80.73 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 ?ENITAL CULTURE 103523E QUEST | $68.10 | $85.12 | $8.45–$81.72 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Nose | $72.76 | $90.95 | $8.45–$87.31 | 20% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 CULTURE SPUTUM W/GRM STN | $72.90 | $81.00 | $34.93–$75.01 | 10% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 CULTURE THROAT | $72.90 | $81.00 | $34.93–$75.01 | 10% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 CULTURE GENITAL | $72.90 | $81.00 | $34.93–$75.01 | 10% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 CULTURE - CATHETER TIP | $77.40 | $86.00 | $37.08–$79.64 | 10% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 CULTURE WOUND/ABSCESS | $77.40 | $86.00 | $37.08–$79.64 | 10% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 TISSUE CULTURE - MICROBIOLOGY | $78.30 | $87.00 | $37.51–$80.56 | 10% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 CULTURE MISCELLANEOUS | $78.30 | $87.00 | $37.51–$80.56 | 10% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 CULTURE EAR | $81.90 | $91.00 | $39.24–$84.27 | 10% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 CULTURE EYE | $81.90 | $91.00 | $39.24–$84.27 | 10% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Urethral | $82.43 | $103.04 | $8.45–$98.92 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Nasopharynx | $82.43 | $103.04 | $8.45–$98.92 | 20% | — source file |
| Millinocket Regional Hospital Millinocket, ME · (207) 723-5161 CULTURE BODY FLUID INCL GRAM S | $84.60 | $94.00 | $40.53–$87.04 | 10% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Eye | $87.41 | $109.26 | $8.45–$104.89 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Pleural Fluid | $88.24 | $110.30 | $8.45–$105.89 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Gc | $88.24 | $110.30 | $8.45–$105.89 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Wound | $88.24 | $110.30 | $8.45–$105.89 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Miscellaneous | $88.24 | $110.30 | $8.45–$105.89 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Skin | $88.24 | $110.30 | $8.45–$105.89 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Sputum | $88.31 | $110.39 | $8.45–$105.97 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 _190571-2 | $90.32 | $112.90 | $8.45–$108.38 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Throat | $95.19 | $118.99 | $8.45–$114.23 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 _190575-2 | $98.96 | $123.70 | $8.45–$118.75 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Ear | $107.10 | $133.88 | $8.45–$128.52 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Cervical | $107.62 | $134.53 | $8.45–$129.15 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Peritoneal Fluid | $107.76 | $134.70 | $8.45–$129.31 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Urogenital | $107.76 | $134.70 | $8.45–$129.31 | 20% | — source file |
| Penobscot Valley Hospital Lincoln, ME · (207) 794-3321 Culture Synovial Fluid | $108.46 | $135.57 | $8.45–$130.15 | 20% | — source file |
Outpatient: lowest $14.70, median $38.43, highest $50.88 — a 3.5× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 4 facilities here, median $38.43. 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 4 of 4 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 it is
A bacterial culture grows bacteria from a sample such as a wound, throat swab, eye or fluid to find which germ causes an infection. It takes one to three days.
What the price covers
The price usually covers running the test; collecting the sample may be billed separately.