Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Marion, IL
In Marion-Herrin, IL, 2 hospitals list a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid): from $70.64 to $302.40, with a median of $186.52. The lowest listed price is at Heartland Regional Medical Center — $115.88 less than the median here. Across Illinois, the median is $90.00 at 107 hospitals.
Cash prices at 2 facilities across 2 cities 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 3, 2026 and Mar 4, 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 Marion-Herrin, IL.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heartland Regional Medical Center lowest Marion, IL · (618) 998-7000 HC CULTURE WOUND | $70.64 | $371.76 | $8.19–$334.58 | 81% | Feb 3, 2026 source file |
| Heartland Regional Medical Center lowest Marion, IL · (618) 998-7000 HC CULTURE CSF | $70.64 | $371.76 | $8.19–$334.58 | 81% | Feb 3, 2026 source file |
| Heartland Regional Medical Center lowest Marion, IL · (618) 998-7000 HC CULTURE EYE | $70.64 | $371.76 | $8.19–$334.58 | 81% | Feb 3, 2026 source file |
| Heartland Regional Medical Center lowest Marion, IL · (618) 998-7000 HC CULTURE BODY FLUID | $70.64 | $371.76 | $8.19–$334.58 | 81% | Feb 3, 2026 source file |
| Heartland Regional Medical Center lowest Marion, IL · (618) 998-7000 HC CULTURE TISSUE | $70.64 | $371.76 | $8.19–$334.58 | 81% | Feb 3, 2026 source file |
| Heartland Regional Medical Center lowest Marion, IL · (618) 998-7000 HC CULTURE GENITAL TRACT | $70.64 | $371.76 | $8.19–$334.58 | 81% | Feb 3, 2026 source file |
| Heartland Regional Medical Center lowest Marion, IL · (618) 998-7000 HC CULTURE BORDETELLA PERTUSSIS REF | $70.64 | $371.76 | $8.19–$334.58 | 81% | Feb 3, 2026 source file |
| Heartland Regional Medical Center lowest Marion, IL · (618) 998-7000 HC CULTURE RESPIRATORY TRACT | $70.64 | $371.76 | $8.19–$334.58 | 81% | Feb 3, 2026 source file |
| Heartland Regional Medical Center lowest Marion, IL · (618) 998-7000 HC CULTURE SPUTUM | $70.64 | $371.76 | $8.19–$334.58 | 81% | Feb 3, 2026 source file |
| Heartland Regional Medical Center lowest Marion, IL · (618) 998-7000 HC CULTURE OTHR SPECIMN AEROBIC | $70.64 | $371.76 | $8.19–$334.58 | 81% | Feb 3, 2026 source file |
| Herrin Hospital Herrin, IL · (618) 942-2171 HC Culture Bacteria No Blood/Urine/Stool | $302.40 | $378.00 | $0.00–$321.30 | 20% | Mar 4, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $70.64, median $186.52, highest $302.40 — a 4.3× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $186.52. 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.