Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Bowling Green, KY
In Bowling Green, KY, 3 hospitals list a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid): from $13.50 to $121.53, with a median of $15.60. The lowest listed price is at The Medical Center at Bowling Green — $2.10 less than the median here. Across Kentucky, the median is $103.20 at 77 hospitals.
Cash prices at 3 facilities across 2 cities for code 87070, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 28, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 and Sep 1, 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 Bowling Green, KY.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green lowest Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 CULTURE OTHR SPECIMN AEROBIC | $13.50 | $26.00 | $5.46–$19.04 | 48% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 CULTURE OTHR SPECIMN AEROBIC | $15.60 | $26.00 | $5.46–$21.15 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 NOSE/THROAT CULTURE | $16.61 | $32.00 | $6.71–$23.43 | 48% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 CULTURE BACTERIAL-OTHER SOURCE | $16.61 | $32.00 | $6.71–$23.43 | 48% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 AEROBIC CULTURE ONLY | $16.61 | $32.00 | $6.71–$23.43 | 48% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 CULTURE-VAG-URETH-GENIT | $16.61 | $32.00 | $6.71–$23.43 | 48% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 BACT CULTURE SPINAL FLUID | $16.61 | $32.00 | $6.71–$23.43 | 48% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 BACT-SURFACE CULTURE AEROBIC | $16.61 | $32.00 | $6.71–$23.43 | 48% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 BACTERIAL CULTURE SPUTUM | $16.61 | $32.00 | $6.71–$23.43 | 48% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 BACTERIAL CULTURE-AEROBIC | $19.20 | $32.00 | $6.71–$23.43 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 BACT CULTURE SPINAL FLUID | $19.20 | $32.00 | $6.71–$26.03 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 BACTERIAL CULTURE SPUTUM | $19.20 | $32.00 | $6.71–$26.03 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 BACT-SURFACE CULTURE AEROBIC | $19.20 | $32.00 | $6.71–$26.03 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 CULTURE-VAG-URETH-GENIT | $19.20 | $32.00 | $6.71–$26.03 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 BACTERIAL CULTURE-AEROBIC | $19.20 | $32.00 | $6.71–$26.03 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 CULTURE BACTERIAL-OTHER SOURCE | $19.20 | $32.00 | $6.71–$26.03 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 NOSE/THROAT CULTURE | $19.20 | $32.00 | $6.71–$26.03 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 AEROBIC CULTURE ONLY | $19.20 | $32.00 | $6.71–$26.03 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 SYNOVASURE AERO CULT | $26.47 | $51.00 | $6.71–$37.34 | 48% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 SYNOVASURE AERO CULT | $30.60 | $51.00 | $6.71–$41.49 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 CULTURE SOURCE | $50.40 | $84.00 | $6.71–$61.50 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 CULTURE SOURCE | $50.40 | $84.00 | $6.71–$68.33 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 NOCARDIA CULTURE | $63.60 | $106.00 | $6.71–$77.61 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 NOCARDIA CULTURE | $63.60 | $106.00 | $6.71–$86.23 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Scottsville Scottsville, KY · (270) 622-2800 CYSTIC RESPIRATORY CULTURE | $74.40 | $124.00 | $6.71–$100.87 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Medical Center at Bowling Green Bowling Green, KY · (270) 745-1000 CYSTIC RESPIRATORY CULTURE | $74.40 | $124.00 | $6.71–$90.79 | 40% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULT ENVIRON EPIDEMI | $121.53 | $121.53 | $19.51–$109.38 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULTURE CSF | $1,127.53 | $1,127.53 | $180.97–$1,014.78 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULTURE RESPIRATORY | $1,127.53 | $1,127.53 | $180.97–$1,014.78 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULTURE CATHETER TIP | $1,127.53 | $1,127.53 | $180.97–$1,014.78 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULTURE EYE | $1,127.53 | $1,127.53 | $180.97–$1,014.78 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULTURE EAR | $1,127.53 | $1,127.53 | $180.97–$1,014.78 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULTURE BODY FLUID | $1,127.53 | $1,127.53 | $180.97–$1,014.78 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULTURE WOUND | $1,127.53 | $1,127.53 | $180.97–$1,014.78 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULTURE BONE MARROW | $1,127.53 | $1,127.53 | $180.97–$1,014.78 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULTURE SPUTUM | $1,127.53 | $1,127.53 | $180.97–$1,014.78 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULTURE SURGICAL SPEC | $1,127.53 | $1,127.53 | $180.97–$1,014.78 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULTURE GENITAL | $1,127.53 | $1,127.53 | $180.97–$1,014.78 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital Bowling Green, KY · (270) 793-1000 CULT THROAT | $1,312.70 | $1,312.70 | $210.69–$1,181.43 | — | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $13.50, median $15.60, highest $121.53 — a 9.0× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $15.60. 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 2 of 3 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.