Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Pittsburgh, PA
In Pittsburgh, PA, 16 hospitals list a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid): from $16.80 to $438.00, with a median of $84.68. The lowest listed price is at Monogahela Valley Hospital — $67.88 less than the median here. Across Pennsylvania, the median is $61.70 at 94 hospitals.
Cash prices at 16 facilities across 11 cities for code 87070, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 28, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Mar 2, 2026 and Apr 14, 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 Pittsburgh, PA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monogahela Valley Hospital lowest Monongahela, PA · (724) 258-1000 FLUID CULTURE source file | $16.80 | $28.00 | $7.53–$34.31 | 40% |
| Monogahela Valley Hospital Monongahela, PA · (724) 258-1000 CULTURE-EYE+20 more lines at this price source file | $22.80 | $38.00 | $10.22–$46.57 | 40% |
| Highlands Hospital Connellsville, PA · (724) 628-1500 CULTURE UTERINE source file | $24.00 | $40.00 | $13.48–$31.20 | 40% |
| UPMC Washington Washington, PA · (724) 225-7000 NOSE CULTURE source file | $24.57 | $35.10 | $6.03–$25.27 | 30% |
| UPMC Washington Washington, PA · (724) 225-7000 CULTURE SMEAR+9 more lines at this price source file | $27.30 | $39.00 | $6.03–$28.08 | 30% |
| Armstrong County Memorial Hospital Kittanning, PA LEGIONELLA CULTURE+1 more line at this price File of Mar 2, 2026 · source file | $32.40 | $108.00 | $6.90–$108.00 | 70% |
| Uniontown Hospital Uniontown, PA · (724) 430-5000 BACTERIAL CULTURE; ANY OTHER SOURCE EXCEPT URINE; BLOOD OR STOOL; AEROBIC source file | $43.00 | $86.00 | $7.59–$171.55 | 50% |
| Highlands Hospital Connellsville, PA · (724) 628-1500 CULTURE VAGINAL+16 more lines at this price source file | $50.40 | $84.00 | $28.31–$65.52 | 40% |
| UPMC Jameson New Castle, PA · (724) 656-4100 CULTURE AEROBIC+1 more line at this price source file | $51.00 | $85.00 | $7.59–$74.80 | 40% |
| Canonsburg General Hospital Canonsburg, PA · (724) 745-6100 HC CULT AERBC OTHR PRESUM ID File of Apr 14, 2026 · source file | $54.60 | $70.00 | $4.18–$22.24 | 22% |
| AHN Wexford Hospital Wexford, PA · (412) 295-3319 HC CULT AERBC OTHR PRESUM ID File of Apr 14, 2026 · source file | $54.76 | $74.00 | $4.18–$26.20 | 26% |
| Monogahela Valley Hospital Monongahela, PA · (724) 258-1000 PERTUSSIS CULTURE source file | $60.60 | $101.00 | $27.17–$123.78 | 40% |
| Uniontown Hospital Uniontown, PA · (724) 430-5000 CULTURE OTHR SPECIMN AEROBIC source file | $71.00 | $142.00 | $7.59–$171.55 | 50% |
| UPMC McKeesport McKeesport, PA · (412) 664-2000 NOCARDIA CULT AND GRAM STAIN+2 more lines at this price source file | $114.60 | $191.00 | $7.59–$162.35 | 40% |
| UPMC Mercy Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 232-8111 THROAT CULTURE+3 more lines at this price source file | $121.20 | $202.00 | $7.19–$181.80 | 40% |
| UPMC East Monroeville, PA · (412) 357-3000 CULTURE AEROBIC+4 more lines at this price source file | $128.40 | $214.00 | $6.90–$171.20 | 40% |
| UPMC Childrens Hospital of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 692-5325 GRAM NEGATIVE IDENTIFICATION+3 more lines at this price File of Mar 6, 2026 · source file | $131.40 | $219.00 | $7.68–$197.10 | 40% |
| UPMC Passavant - McCandless Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 367-6700 HC CATHETER TIP CULTURE+1 more line at this price source file | $235.20 | $392.00 | $7.59–$333.20 | 40% |
| UPMC St Margaret Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 784-4000 CULTURE THROAT+10 more lines at this price source file | $250.20 | $417.00 | $7.44–$354.45 | 40% |
| UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 641-4010 HC CATHETER TIP CULTURE+1 more line at this price source file | $300.00 | $500.00 | $7.59–$460.00 | 40% |
| UPMC Presbyterian Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 647-2345 CULTURE BACT DEFINITIVE BRS+7 more lines at this price File of Mar 6, 2026 · source file | $438.00 | $730.00 | $6.90–$620.50 | 40% |
Outpatient: lowest $16.80, median $84.68, highest $438.00 — a 26.1× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 17 facilities here, median $86.20. 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 14 of 16 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.
4 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 87070 ($91.03). 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Advanced Surgical Hospital Washington, PABACTERIAL CULTURE | $8.62 | file |
| Advanced Surgical Hospital Washington, PACULTURE WOUND AEROBIC 87070 | $8.62 | file |
| Advanced Surgical Hospital Washington, PACULTURE SPUTUM | $8.62 | file |
| Advanced Surgical Hospital Washington, PACULTURE BODY FLUID - 87070 | $8.62 | file |