Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Joplin, MO
In Joplin, MO-KS, 6 hospitals list a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid): from $38.35 to $124.32, with a median of $88.73. The lowest listed price is at Mercy Hospital Joplin — $50.38 less than the median here. Across Missouri, the median is $67.70 at 63 hospitals.
Cash prices at 6 facilities across 5 cities 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 Sep 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 Joplin, MO-KS.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercy Hospital Joplin lowest Joplin, MO · (417) 781-2727 Culture Respiratory+4 more lines at this price source file | $38.35 | $59.00 | $7.03–$59.00 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Carthage Carthage, MO · (417) 358-8121 Culture Genital source file | $68.90 | $106.00 | $29.12–$106.00 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Columbus Columbus, KS · (620) 429-2545 Culture Genital source file | $78.65 | $121.00 | $7.67–$41.57 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Joplin Joplin, MO · (417) 781-2727 Culture Throat source file | $87.10 | $134.00 | $7.03–$52.95 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Carthage Carthage, MO · (417) 358-8121 Culture Throat source file | $92.95 | $143.00 | $7.35–$34.28 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Carthage Carthage, MO · (417) 358-8121 Culture Spinal Fluid source file | $93.60 | $144.00 | $7.35–$34.28 | 35% |
| Mercy Specialty Hospital Southeast Kansas Galena, KS · (620) 783-1732 Culture Wound Aerobic source file | $98.80 | $152.00 | $7.04–$52.95 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Columbus Columbus, KS · (620) 429-2545 Culture Throat source file | $106.60 | $164.00 | $7.67–$41.57 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Columbus Columbus, KS · (620) 429-2545 Culture Wound Aerobic source file | $107.25 | $165.00 | $7.67–$41.57 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Columbus Columbus, KS · (620) 429-2545 Culture Spinal Fluid source file | $107.90 | $166.00 | $7.67–$41.57 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Carthage Carthage, MO · (417) 358-8121 Culture Ear source file | $109.20 | $168.00 | $7.35–$34.28 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Carthage Carthage, MO · (417) 358-8121 Culture Wound Aerobic source file | $114.40 | $176.00 | $7.35–$34.28 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Carthage Carthage, MO · (417) 358-8121 Culture Resp Cystic Fibrosis Pt+7 more lines at this price source file | $120.90 | $186.00 | $7.35–$186.00 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Columbus Columbus, KS · (620) 429-2545 Culture Sputum source file | $120.90 | $186.00 | $7.67–$41.57 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Columbus Columbus, KS · (620) 429-2545 Culture Aerobic Only source file | $123.50 | $190.00 | $7.67–$41.57 | 35% |
| Freeman Neosho Hospital Neosho, MO · (417) 451-1234 CULTURE WOUND+3 more lines at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $124.32 | $310.80 | — | 60% |
| Freeman Health System - Freeman West Joplin, MO · (417) 347-1111 CULTURE WOUND+3 more lines at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $124.32 | $310.80 | — | 60% |
| Mercy Hospital Columbus Columbus, KS · (620) 429-2545 Culture Resp Cystic Fibrosis Pt+8 more lines at this price source file | $124.80 | $192.00 | $7.67–$41.57 | 35% |
| Mercy Specialty Hospital Southeast Kansas Galena, KS · (620) 783-1732 Culture Spinal Fluid source file | $128.70 | $198.00 | $7.04–$52.95 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Carthage Carthage, MO · (417) 358-8121 Culture Nasopharyngeal+1 more line at this price source file | $129.35 | $199.00 | $7.35–$199.00 | 35% |
| Freeman Health System - Freeman West Joplin, MO · (417) 347-1111 CULTURE BACTERIAL OTHER File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $129.46 | $323.66 | — | 60% |
| Freeman Neosho Hospital Neosho, MO · (417) 451-1234 CULTURE BACTERIAL OTHER File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $129.46 | $323.66 | — | 60% |
| Mercy Hospital Carthage Carthage, MO · (417) 358-8121 Culture Aerobic Only source file | $131.95 | $203.00 | $7.35–$34.28 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Columbus Columbus, KS · (620) 429-2545 Culture Nasopharyngeal source file | $133.25 | $205.00 | $7.67–$41.57 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Joplin Joplin, MO · (417) 781-2727 Culture Placenta+9 more lines at this price source file | $139.10 | $214.00 | $7.03–$214.00 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Carthage Carthage, MO · (417) 358-8121 Culture Bronchial Brush source file | $143.00 | $220.00 | $7.35–$34.28 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Columbus Columbus, KS · (620) 429-2545 Culture Bronchial Brush source file | $147.55 | $227.00 | $7.67–$41.57 | 35% |
| Mercy Specialty Hospital Southeast Kansas Galena, KS · (620) 783-1732 Culture Sputum source file | $152.10 | $234.00 | $7.04–$52.95 | 35% |
| Mercy Specialty Hospital Southeast Kansas Galena, KS · (620) 783-1732 Culture Aerobic Only source file | $153.40 | $236.00 | $7.04–$52.95 | 35% |
| Mercy Hospital Joplin Joplin, MO · (417) 781-2727 Culture Sputum+1 more line at this price source file | $176.80 | $272.00 | $7.03–$272.00 | 35% |
Outpatient: lowest $38.35, median $88.73, highest $124.32 — a 3.2× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $124.32. 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 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 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.