Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Meridian, MS — inpatient
In Meridian, MS, 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 $12.06 to $48.83, with a median of $30.43. The lowest listed price is at Ochsner Watkins Hospital — $18.37 less than the median here. Across Mississippi, the median is $53.04 at 53 hospitals.
Cash prices at 4 facilities across 2 cities for code 87070, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Oct 2, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 17, 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 Meridian, MS.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ochsner Watkins Hospital lowest Quitman, MS · (601) 776-6925 HC CULTURE, ENVIRONMENTAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $12.06 | $18.00 | — | 33% |
| Baptist Anderson Regional Medical Center-South Meridian, MS · (601) 484-3590 CULTURE AEROBIC SOURCE OTHER THAN BLOOD/URINE/STOOL File of Feb 17, 2026 · source file | $13.60 | $34.00 | $6.80–$25.50 | 60% |
| Ochsner Watkins Hospital Quitman, MS · (601) 776-6925 HC RESP CULT, CYSTIC FIBROSIS File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $35.51 | $53.00 | — | 33% |
| Ochsner Specialty Hospital Meridian, MS · (601) 483-0011 HC RESPIRATORY CULTURE+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $47.25 | $157.50 | — | 70% |
| Ochsner Rush Hospital Meridian, MS · (601) 483-0011 HC CULTURE, ROUTINE AEROBIC+2 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $48.83 | $157.50 | — | 69% |
| Ochsner Watkins Hospital Quitman, MS · (601) 776-6925 HC CULTURE, ROUTINE AEROBIC+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $121.27 | $181.00 | — | 33% |
Inpatient: lowest $12.06, median $30.43, highest $48.83 — a 4.0× difference within the same market.
As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 3 facilities here, median $13.60 — 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.
3 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 87070 ($87.04). 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Ochsner Specialty Hospital Meridian, MSHC CULTURE, ENVIRONMENTAL | $5.40 | file |
| Ochsner Rush Hospital Meridian, MSHC CULTURE, ENVIRONMENTAL | $5.58 | file |
| Baptist Anderson Regional Medical Center Meridian, MSCULTURE AEROBIC SOURCE OTHER THAN BLOOD/URINE/STOOL | $7.48 | file |