Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Oshkosh, WI
In Oshkosh-Neenah, WI, 5 hospitals list a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid): from $10.26 to $80.00, with a median of $43.79. The lowest listed price is at Ascension NE Wisconsin - Mercy Campus — $33.53 less than the median here. Across Wisconsin, the median is $77.35 at 98 hospitals.
Cash prices at 5 facilities across 2 cities for code 87070, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Nov 21, 2025 and Mar 24, 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 Oshkosh-Neenah, WI.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ascension NE Wisconsin - Mercy Campus lowest Oshkosh, WI HC CULTURE, WOUND AEROBIC WITH GRAM STAIN+1 more line at this price source file | $10.26 | $18.00 | $9.05–$16.53 | 43% |
| Ascension NE Wisconsin - Mercy Campus Oshkosh, WI HC CULTURE, THROAT+3 more lines at this price source file | $22.23 | $39.00 | $9.05–$19.37 | 43% |
| ThedaCare Regional Medical Center-Oshkosh Oshkosh, WI CULTURE, BACTERIA, AEROBIC+1 more line at this price source file | $43.79 | $78.20 | — | 44% |
| ThedaCare Regional Medical Center-Neenah Neenah, WI · (920) 729-3100 CULTURE, BACTERIA, AEROBIC+1 more line at this price source file | $43.79 | $78.20 | — | 44% |
| Ascension NE Wisconsin - Mercy Campus Oshkosh, WI HC CULTURE OTHER SPECIMEN AEROBIC RECTAL SCRN+1 more line at this price source file | $43.89 | $77.00 | $9.05–$19.37 | 43% |
| Ascension NE Wisconsin - Mercy Campus Oshkosh, WI HC CULTURE, GENITAL source file | $44.46 | $78.00 | $9.05–$19.37 | 43% |
| Ascension NE Wisconsin - Mercy Campus Oshkosh, WI HC CULTURE, SPUTUM source file | $47.88 | $84.00 | $9.05–$19.37 | 43% |
| Childrens Hospital of Wisconsin Fox Valley Neenah, WI · (920) 969-7900 HBC FV CULTURE BACTERIA AEROBIC+1 more line at this price File of Mar 24, 2026 · source file | $52.94 | $96.25 | $67.38–$91.44 | 45% |
| Aurora Medical Center Oshkosh Oshkosh, WI · (920) 456-6000 CULTURE, AEROBIC File of Nov 21, 2025 · source file | $80.00 | $160.00 | $6.90–$136.00 | 50% |
Outpatient: lowest $10.26, median $43.79, highest $80.00 — a 7.8× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $66.47. 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 3 of 3 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at 1 it is 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.