HIV viral load test cost in Duluth, MN
In Duluth, MN-WI, 12 hospitals list a cash price for HIV viral load test (HIV-1 RNA, quantitative): from $64.06 to $440.10, with a median of $75.38. The lowest listed price is at Essentia Health Virginia — $11.32 less than the median here. Across Minnesota, the median is $114.91 at 69 hospitals.
- The median here, $75.38, is 73% below the US median of $276.38.
- That is 0.9× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($85.10).
- Duluth, MN has the lowest median of 2 metro areas in Minnesota with at least 10 hospitals pricing this code.
- Every hospital here lists a cash price below its full list price.
Cash prices at 12 facilities across 9 cities for code 87536, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 27, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jan 1, 2026 and Sep 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 Duluth, MN-WI.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essentia Health Virginia lowest Virginia, MN · (218) 741-3340 HIV-1 DNA QUANT File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $64.06 | $102.00 | $23.46–$92.21 | 37% |
| Essentia Health St. Mary's Children's Hospital Duluth, MN HIV-1 DNA QUANT File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $67.32 | $102.00 | $33.76–$87.72 | 34% |
| Essentia Health Duluth Duluth, MN · (218) 786-2652 HIV-1 DNA QUANT File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $67.32 | $102.00 | $33.76–$87.72 | 34% |
| Essentia Health St. Mary's Medical Center Duluth, MN · (218) 786-3574 HIV-1 DNA QUANT File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $67.32 | $102.00 | $33.76–$87.72 | 34% |
| Essentia Health Moose Lake Moose Lake, MN · (218) 786-1367 HIV-1 DNA QUANT File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $75.38 | $102.00 | $40.60–$92.31 | 26% |
| Essentia Health St Marys Hospital-Superior Superior, WI · (715) 817-7000 HIV-1 DNA QUANT File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $75.38 | $102.00 | $32.64–$92.31 | 26% |
| Essentia Health Northern Pines Aurora, MN · (218) 229-4222 HIV-1 DNA QUANT File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $75.38 | $102.00 | $39.16–$102.00 | 26% |
| Range Regional Health Services Hibbing, MN · (218) 362-6730 HC HIV-1 RNA QUANT File of Jan 29, 2026 · source file | $120.28 | $283.00 | $65.35–$285.89 | 57% |
| Ely-Bloomenson Community Hospital Ely, MN · (218) 365-3271 Detection test by nucleic acid for HIV-1 virus, quantification File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $186.30 | $230.00 | $78.64–$230.00 | 19% |
| The Cook Hospital one side Cook, MN · (218) 666-5945 HIV-1 RNA, QUANT, RT-PCR File of Aug 10, 2026 · source file | $291.39 | $441.50 | — | 34% |
| Community Memorial Hospital Cloquet, MN · (218) 879-4641 HIV-1 QUANTIFICATION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $398.08 | $622.00 | $622.00 | 36% |
| Aspirus St. Luke’s Hospital Duluth, MN · (218) 249-2449 Fac Hiv-1, Dna, Quant File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $440.10 | $809.00 | — | 46% |
Outpatient: lowest $64.06, median $75.38, highest $440.10 — a 6.9× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 8 facilities here, median $93.80. 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 10 of 10 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 HIV viral load test is, what the price covers and why prices differ: HIV viral load test explained.