Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Carlsbad, NM
In Carlsbad-Artesia, NM, 1 hospital lists a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid): from $106.80 to $106.80, with a median of $106.80. Across New Mexico, the median is $82.59 at 18 hospitals.
Cash prices at 1 facility 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 Feb 20, 2026 and Feb 20, 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 Carlsbad-Artesia, NM.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Artesia General Hospital lowest Artesia, NM · (575) 748-3333 CULTURE BONE File of Feb 20, 2026 · source file | $106.80 | $178.00 | $7.33–$169.10 | 40% |
| Artesia General Hospital Artesia, NM · (575) 748-3333 CULTURE SUBQ TISSUE File of Feb 20, 2026 · source file | $138.00 | $230.00 | $7.33–$218.50 | 40% |
| Artesia General Hospital Artesia, NM · (575) 748-3333 culture b pertussis nasophar REF180224+15 more lines at this price File of Feb 20, 2026 · source file | $165.60 | $276.00 | $7.33–$262.20 | 40% |
Outpatient: lowest $106.80, median $106.80, highest $106.80.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $57.90. 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 the one hospital here that publishes insurer rates for this code, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated. 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.
1 row held back from this comparison
It is priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 87070 ($87.75). 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Carlsbad Medical Center Carlsbad, NMCULTURE BACTERIA OTH | $4.50 | file |