Lab tests CPT 87070 Outpatient

Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Fargo, ND

In Fargo, ND-MN, 2 hospitals list a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid): from $80.25 to $86.20, with a median of $83.23. The lowest listed price is at Essentia Health Fargo — $2.98 less than the median here. Across North Dakota, the median is $64.80 at 28 hospitals.

Cash prices at 2 facilities for code 87070, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 29, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jan 1, 2026 and Aug 6, 2026.

Lowest$80.25Essentia Health Fargo

Median$83.23half of hospitals charge less

Highest$86.20in this market

Difference1.1×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 Fargo, ND-MN.

median

Lowest $80.25Highest $237.00

Hospitals, cheapest first

Hospital	Cash price	List price	Insurers pay	Off list
Essentia Health Fargo lowest Fargo, ND · (701) 364-8000 LAB CULTURE BACTERIA File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file	$80.25	$107.00	$28.68–$90.95	25%
PAM Cubed Rehabilitation Hospital of Fargo Fargo, ND Sputum Culture+1 more line at this price File of Aug 6, 2026 · source file	$86.20	$86.20	$8.62–$73.27	—
PAM Cubed Rehabilitation Hospital of Fargo Fargo, ND Aerobic culture File of Aug 6, 2026 · source file	$237.00	$237.00	$8.62–$201.45	—

Hospital The hospital that published the price, its city and the line exactly as written in its price file.

Cash price The hospital's own price for a patient paying without insurance (“discounted cash” in its price file). Hospitals must publish it under federal law, 45 CFR 180.50. Call to confirm it before booking. More

List price The hospital's full chargemaster price (“gross charge”) before any discount. Almost nobody pays it; the gap to the cash price shows what the self-pay discount is worth. More

Insurers pay The lowest and highest rates this hospital has agreed with insurance plans for the same item, from its price file. If the cash price is below what your plan pays and you have not met your deductible, paying cash can cost you less. More

Off list How much lower the cash price is than the list price.

No cash discount This line's cash price equals the hospital's full list price. Many hospitals still reduce bills for uninsured patients: ask the billing office for its self-pay discount in writing. More

Outpatient: lowest $80.25, median $83.23, highest $86.20 — a 1.1× difference within the same market.

As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $83.23. 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 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.