Biopsy pathology exam cost in Duluth, MN
In Duluth, MN-WI, 5 hospitals list a cash price for biopsy tissue exam by a pathologist (level IV): from $90.73 to $207.66, with a median of $207.66. The lowest listed price is at Range Regional Health Services — $116.93 less than the median here. Across Minnesota, the median is $90.00 at 47 hospitals.
Cash prices at 5 facilities across 5 cities for code 88305, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jan 1, 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 Duluth, MN-WI.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Range Regional Health Services lowest Hibbing, MN · (218) 362-6730 HC SURGICAL PATHOLOGY (DERM) TC | $90.73 | $213.48 | $35.21–$572.73 | 57% | Jan 29, 2026 source file |
| Range Regional Health Services Hibbing, MN · (218) 362-6730 HC SURG PATH, LEVEL IV TC PROSTATE | $93.93 | $221.00 | $35.21–$572.73 | 57% | Jan 29, 2026 source file |
| Range Regional Health Services Hibbing, MN · (218) 362-6730 HC CELL BLOCK BF TC | $93.93 | $221.00 | $35.21–$572.73 | 57% | Jan 29, 2026 source file |
| Range Regional Health Services Hibbing, MN · (218) 362-6730 HC SURG PATH, LEVEL IV TC | $93.93 | $221.00 | $35.21–$572.73 | 57% | Jan 29, 2026 source file |
| Aspirus St. Luke’s Hospital Duluth, MN · (218) 249-2449 Pro Surgical Path Level 4 | $169.18 | $311.00 | — | 46% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Aspirus St. Luke’s Hospital Duluth, MN · (218) 249-2449 Pro Tissue Exam by Pathologist | $169.18 | $311.00 | — | 46% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Aspirus St. Luke’s Hospital Duluth, MN · (218) 249-2449 Fac Tissue Exam by Pathologist | $180.61 | $332.00 | — | 46% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Aspirus St. Luke’s Hospital Duluth, MN · (218) 249-2449 Path Level IV 88305 Initial -Tech-Mh | $180.61 | $332.00 | — | 46% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Aspirus St. Luke’s Hospital Duluth, MN · (218) 249-2449 Fac Surgical Path Level 4 | $180.61 | $332.00 | — | 46% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Essentia Health Northern Pines Aurora, MN · (218) 229-4222 LEVEL IV - SURGICAL PATHOLOGY, GROSS AND MICROSCOPIC EXAMINATION , TECH | $207.66 | $281.00 | $107.88–$281.00 | 26% | Jan 1, 2026 source file |
| Essentia Health St Marys Hospital-Superior Superior, WI · (715) 817-7000 LEVEL IV - SURGICAL PATHOLOGY, GROSS AND MICROSCOPIC EXAMINATION , TECH | $207.66 | $281.00 | $89.92–$254.30 | 26% | Jan 1, 2026 source file |
| Essentia Health Moose Lake Moose Lake, MN · (218) 786-1367 LEVEL IV - SURGICAL PATHOLOGY, GROSS AND MICROSCOPIC EXAMINATION , TECH | $207.66 | $281.00 | $111.84–$254.30 | 26% | Jan 1, 2026 source file |
| Aspirus St. Luke’s Hospital Duluth, MN · (218) 249-2449 LEVEL IV SURG PATHOLOGY GROSS&MICROSCOPIC EXAM | $349.79 | $643.00 | — | 46% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $90.73, median $207.66, highest $207.66 — a 2.3× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 5 facilities here, median $207.66. 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 4 of 4 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
This code covers the lab exam of a tissue sample under a microscope. Most biopsies use it, including skin, colon polyp, stomach, breast core and prostate core biopsies.
What the price covers
The price is usually for one specimen. Each separate specimen is billed again, and the pathologist's reading may be billed separately.
1 row held back from this comparison
It is priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 88305 ($186.06). 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.
| Range Regional Health Services Hibbing, MNHC SURG PATH, LEVEL IV TC GICH TO ALLINA OPNP | $18.05 | file |