Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Massena, NY
In Massena-Ogdensburg, NY, 4 hospitals list a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid): from $17.76 to $32.36, with a median of $27.44. The lowest listed price is at Clifton-Fine Healthcare — $9.68 less than the median here. Across New York, the median is $39.59 at 100 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 Apr 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 Massena-Ogdensburg, NY.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clifton-Fine Healthcare lowest Star Lake, NY · (315) 848-4205 CULTURE CONFIRM WADSWORTH | $17.76 | $17.76 | $161.70 | — | — source file |
| Clifton-Fine Healthcare Star Lake, NY · (315) 848-4205 REFLEX SPUTUM CULTURE RESULT | $21.64 | $21.64 | $161.70 | — | — source file |
| Clifton-Fine Healthcare Star Lake, NY · (315) 848-4205 CULTURE ROUTINE- UPPER RESP. | $23.08 | $23.08 | $161.70 | — | — source file |
| Clifton-Fine Healthcare Star Lake, NY · (315) 848-4205 CULTURE WOUND | $23.08 | $23.08 | $161.70 | — | — source file |
| Clifton-Fine Healthcare Star Lake, NY · (315) 848-4205 SPUTUM CULTURE REFLEX | $23.08 | $23.08 | $161.70 | — | — source file |
| Slhs Massena Massena, NY · (315) 769-4234 HC BACTERIAL CULTURE AEROBIC_ OTHER THAN URINE_ BLOOD OR STOOL_ W ISOLATION _ PRESUMPTIVE ID | $27.44 | $42.21 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Gouverneur Hospital Gouverneur, NY · (315) 287-1000 HC BACTERIAL CULTURE AEROBIC_ OTHER THAN URINE_ BLOOD OR STOOL_ W ISOLATION _ PRESUMPTIVE ID | $27.44 | $42.21 | — | 35% | — source file |
| Canton-Potsdam Hospital Potsdam, NY · (315) 265-3300 HC BACTERIAL CULTURE AEROBIC_ OTHER THAN URINE_ BLOOD OR STOOL_ W ISOLATION _ PRESUMPTIVE ID | $32.36 | $49.78 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Clifton-Fine Healthcare Star Lake, NY · (315) 848-4205 TISSUE CULTURE | $69.91 | $69.91 | $161.70 | — | — source file |
| Clifton-Fine Healthcare Star Lake, NY · (315) 848-4205 CULTURE BODY FLUID | $69.91 | $69.91 | $161.70 | — | — source file |
| Clifton-Fine Healthcare Star Lake, NY · (315) 848-4205 CULTURE GENITAL LC | $71.05 | $71.05 | $161.70 | — | — source file |
| Clifton-Fine Healthcare Star Lake, NY · (315) 848-4205 CULTURE LEGIONELLA SPECIES | $190.24 | $190.24 | $161.70 | — | — source file |
Outpatient: lowest $17.76, median $27.44, highest $32.36 — a 1.8× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 3 facilities here, median $27.44. 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 the one hospital here that publishes insurer rates for this code, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated and 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.