Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Little Rock, AR — inpatient
In Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR, 4 hospitals list a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid) as an inpatient: from $9.90 to $217.19, with a median of $39.60. The lowest listed price is at Conway Regional Medical Center — $29.70 less than the median here. Across Arkansas, the median is $38.48 at 50 hospitals.
Cash prices at 4 facilities across 3 cities for code 87070, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 27, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 28, 2026 and Jul 2, 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 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conway Regional Medical Center lowest Conway, AR · (501) 329-3831 CULTURE OTHR SPECIMAN AEROBIC File of Jul 2, 2026 · source file | $9.90 | $45.00 | $9.90–$45.00 | 78% |
| St. Vincent Infirmary Medical Center Sherwood, AR · (501) 552-7100 CULTURE PREDOMINATING ORGANISM File of Feb 28, 2026 · source file | $39.41 | $155.00 | — | 75% |
| CHI St. Vincent Infirmary Little Rock, AR · (501) 552-3000 CULTURE PREDOMINATING ORGANISM File of Feb 28, 2026 · source file | $39.78 | $155.00 | — | 74% |
| Conway Regional Medical Center Conway, AR · (501) 329-3831 CULTURE THROAT+4 more lines at this price File of Jul 2, 2026 · source file | $54.95 | $249.77 | $54.95–$249.77 | 78% |
| Conway Regional Rehabilitation Hospital Conway, AR CULTURE BACTERIAL OTHER source file | $217.19 | $217.19 | — | — |
Inpatient: lowest $9.90, median $39.60, highest $217.19 — a 21.9× difference within the same market.
As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 11 facilities here, median $39.41 — that is the price to compare if you are not being admitted.
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.