Bacterial culture (wound) cost in Shelbyville, TN
In Shelbyville, TN, 1 hospital lists a cash price for bacterial culture of a sample other than urine, blood or stool (wound, throat, fluid): from $37.99 to $37.99, with a median of $37.99. Across Tennessee, the median is $40.20 at 88 hospitals.
Cash prices at 1 facility 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 Oct 1, 2025 and Oct 1, 2025.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Shelbyville, TN.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vanderbilt Bedford Hospital lowest Shelbyville, TN · (931) 685-5433 HC CULT BACT RESP CF | $37.99 | $131.00 | $8.17–$104.80 | 71% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
| Vanderbilt Bedford Hospital lowest Shelbyville, TN · (931) 685-5433 HC CULTURE BACT JOINT | $37.99 | $131.00 | $8.17–$104.80 | 71% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
| Vanderbilt Bedford Hospital lowest Shelbyville, TN · (931) 685-5433 HC CULTURE BACT WOUND SUPER | $37.99 | $131.00 | $8.17–$104.80 | 71% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
| Vanderbilt Bedford Hospital lowest Shelbyville, TN · (931) 685-5433 HC CULTURE BACT ABSCESS | $37.99 | $131.00 | $8.17–$104.80 | 71% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
| Vanderbilt Bedford Hospital lowest Shelbyville, TN · (931) 685-5433 HC CULTURE BACT BODY FLUID | $37.99 | $131.00 | $8.17–$104.80 | 71% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
| Vanderbilt Bedford Hospital lowest Shelbyville, TN · (931) 685-5433 HC CULTURE BACT TISSUE-SURGICAL | $37.99 | $131.00 | $8.17–$104.80 | 71% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
| Vanderbilt Bedford Hospital lowest Shelbyville, TN · (931) 685-5433 HC CULTURE BACT WOUND DEEP | $37.99 | $131.00 | $8.17–$104.80 | 71% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
| Vanderbilt Bedford Hospital Shelbyville, TN · (931) 685-5433 HC CULTURE OTHER SOURCE | $38.86 | $134.00 | $8.17–$107.20 | 71% | Oct 1, 2025 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $37.99, median $37.99, highest $37.99.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 1 facility here, median $37.99. 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. 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.