Lab tests CPT 87070 Inpatient — admitted to hospital

Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Beckley, WV — inpatient

In Beckley, WV, 2 hospitals list a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid) as an inpatient: from $56.20 to $169.20, with a median of $112.70. The lowest listed price is at Montgomery General Hospital — $56.50 less than the median here. Across West Virginia, the median is $50.50 at 34 hospitals.

Cash prices at 2 facilities across 2 cities for code 87070, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 27, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 17, 2026 and Feb 17, 2026.

Lowest$56.20Montgomery General Hospital
Median$112.70half pay less
Highest$169.20in this market
Difference3.0×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 Beckley, WV.

median
Lowest $56.20Highest $169.20

Hospitals, cheapest first

HospitalCash price List priceInsurers payOff listFile date
Montgomery General Hospital lowest Montgomery, WV · (304) 442-5151 CULTURE,FUNGUS EXCEPT BLOOD $56.20 $74.93 $8.62–$11.64 25% Feb 17, 2026
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Montgomery General Hospital Montgomery, WV · (304) 442-5151 CULTURE, THROAT $56.78 $75.71 $8.62–$11.64 25% Feb 17, 2026
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Montgomery General Hospital Montgomery, WV · (304) 442-5151 CULTURE,RESPIRATORY W/ISOLATIN $60.64 $80.86 $8.62–$11.64 25% Feb 17, 2026
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Montgomery General Hospital Montgomery, WV · (304) 442-5151 CSF CULTURE W/ISOLATION $60.64 $80.86 $8.62–$11.64 25% Feb 17, 2026
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Montgomery General Hospital Montgomery, WV · (304) 442-5151 GENITAL CULTURE W/ISOLATION $60.64 $80.86 $8.62–$11.64 25% Feb 17, 2026
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Montgomery General Hospital Montgomery, WV · (304) 442-5151 CULTURE/OTH SOURCE W/ ISOLATIO $60.64 $80.86 $8.62–$11.64 25% Feb 17, 2026
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Montgomery General Hospital Montgomery, WV · (304) 442-5151 BODY FLUID CULTURE W/ISOLATION $60.64 $80.86 $8.62–$11.64 25% Feb 17, 2026
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Beckley Arh Hospital Beckley, WV · (304) 255-3000 CULTURE OTH SPECIMEN AEROBIC $169.20 $282.00 $7.76–$248.16 40% —
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Inpatient: lowest $56.20, median $112.70, highest $169.20 — a 3.0× difference within the same market.

As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 3 facilities here, median $56.20 — 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 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.