Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Lakeland, FL
In Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL, 4 hospitals list a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid): from $16.20 to $454.81, with a median of $225.17. The lowest listed price is at Bartow Regional Medical Center and 1 other hospital — $208.97 less than the median here. Across Florida, the median is $90.00 at 151 hospitals.
Cash prices at 4 facilities across 4 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 Jan 1, 2026 and Apr 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 Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bartow Regional Medical Center lowest Bartow, FL · (863) 533-8111 CULTURE CSF+2 more lines at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $16.20 | $27.00 | $4.86–$27.00 | 40% |
| Winter Haven Hospital lowest Winter Haven, FL · (863) 293-1121 CULTURE SHOULDER+2 more lines at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $16.20 | $27.00 | $4.86–$27.00 | 40% |
| Bartow Regional Medical Center Bartow, FL · (863) 533-8111 LEGIONELLA SPECIES CULTURE File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $40.00 | $7.20–$40.00 | 40% |
| Winter Haven Hospital Winter Haven, FL · (863) 293-1121 LEGIONELLA SPECIES CULTURE File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $24.00 | $40.00 | $7.20–$40.00 | 40% |
| Winter Haven Hospital Winter Haven, FL · (863) 293-1121 CULTURE ENVIRONMENTAL File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $25.20 | $42.00 | $7.56–$42.00 | 40% |
| Bartow Regional Medical Center Bartow, FL · (863) 533-8111 CULTURE ENVIRONMENTAL File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $25.20 | $42.00 | $7.56–$42.00 | 40% |
| Winter Haven Hospital Winter Haven, FL · (863) 293-1121 CULTURE CF RESPIRATORY+4 more lines at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $25.80 | $43.00 | $7.74–$43.00 | 40% |
| Bartow Regional Medical Center Bartow, FL · (863) 533-8111 CULTURE CATHETER+4 more lines at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $25.80 | $43.00 | $7.74–$43.00 | 40% |
| Winter Haven Hospital Winter Haven, FL · (863) 293-1121 CULTURE BODY FLUID File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $26.40 | $44.00 | $7.92–$44.00 | 40% |
| Bartow Regional Medical Center Bartow, FL · (863) 533-8111 CULTURE BODY FLUID File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $26.40 | $44.00 | $7.92–$44.00 | 40% |
| Bartow Regional Medical Center Bartow, FL · (863) 533-8111 CULTURE GENITAL+3 more lines at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $34.80 | $58.00 | $10.44–$58.00 | 40% |
| Winter Haven Hospital Winter Haven, FL · (863) 293-1121 CULTURE GENITAL+3 more lines at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $34.80 | $58.00 | $10.44–$58.00 | 40% |
| Winter Haven Hospital Winter Haven, FL · (863) 293-1121 C SINUS OTHER CULT DEFINITIVE File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $74.40 | $124.00 | $22.32–$124.00 | 40% |
| Bartow Regional Medical Center Bartow, FL · (863) 533-8111 C SINUS OTHER CULT DEFINITIVE File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $74.40 | $124.00 | $22.32–$124.00 | 40% |
| AdventHealth Lake Wales Lake Wales, FL · (863) 676-1433 HC CSF CULTURE WITH GRAM STAIN+9 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $434.13 | $434.13 | — | — |
| AdventHealth Heart of Florida Davenport, FL · (863) 422-4971 HC GENITAL CULTURE+2 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $454.81 | $454.81 | — | — |
| AdventHealth Heart of Florida Davenport, FL · (863) 422-4971 HC CATH TIP CULTURE File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,142.48 | $1,142.48 | — | — |
| AdventHealth Heart of Florida Davenport, FL · (863) 422-4971 HC MICROBIOLOGY - CULTURE AEROBIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,146.18 | $1,146.18 | — | — |
| AdventHealth Heart of Florida Davenport, FL · (863) 422-4971 HC CSF CULTURE WITH GRAM STAIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,196.56 | $1,196.56 | — | — |
| AdventHealth Heart of Florida Davenport, FL · (863) 422-4971 HC BONE CULTURE+2 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,200.02 | $1,200.02 | — | — |
| AdventHealth Heart of Florida Davenport, FL · (863) 422-4971 HC EAR CULTURE+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,610.78 | $1,610.78 | — | — |
| AdventHealth Heart of Florida Davenport, FL · (863) 422-4971 HC THROAT CULTURE COMPREHENSIVE File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,630.41 | $1,630.41 | — | — |
Outpatient: lowest $16.20, median $225.17, highest $454.81 — a 28.1× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 4 facilities here, median $225.17. 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 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.
7 rows held back from this comparison
They are 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Orlando Health Lakeland Highlands Hospital Lakeland, FLHb Csf Culture | $7.20 | file |
| Orlando Health Lakeland Highlands Hospital Lakeland, FLHb Culture Aerobic | $7.20 | file |
| Orlando Health Lakeland Highlands Hospital Lakeland, FLHb Genital Culture | $7.20 | file |
| Orlando Health Lakeland Highlands Hospital Lakeland, FLHb Lower Resp Culture | $7.20 | file |
| Orlando Health Lakeland Highlands Hospital Lakeland, FLHb Upper Resp Culture | $7.20 | file |
| Orlando Health Lakeland Highlands Hospital Lakeland, FLHb Environmental Culture | $7.20 | file |
| Orlando Health Lakeland Highlands Hospital Lakeland, FLHb Culture Id-Ref | $8.40 | file |