Speech evaluation cost in San Diego, CA
In San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA, 13 hospitals list a cash price for speech and language evaluation: from $119.66 to $457.08, with a median of $249.00. The lowest listed price is at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla and 4 other hospitals — $129.34 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $457.08 at 136 hospitals.
- The median here, $249.00, is 27% below the US median of $340.80.
- That is 1.1× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($226.46).
- San Diego, CA has the lowest median of 4 metro areas in California with at least 10 hospitals pricing this code.
- Every hospital here lists a cash price below its full list price.
Cash prices at 13 facilities across 7 cities for code 92523, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 29, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Mar 30, 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 San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla lowest La Jolla, CA · (858) 626-4123 HC Eval Language Comp/Expres File of Mar 30, 2026 · source file | $119.66 | $478.66 | $38.29–$623.33 | 75% |
| Scripps Memorial Hospital Encinitas lowest Encinitas, CA · (760) 753-6501 HC Eval Language Comp/Expres File of Mar 30, 2026 · source file | $119.66 | $478.66 | $38.29–$623.33 | 75% |
| Scripps Mercy Hospital Chula Vista lowest San Diego, CA · (619) 294-8111 HC Eval Language Comp/Expres File of Mar 30, 2026 · source file | $119.66 | $478.66 | $38.29–$623.33 | 75% |
| Scripps Mercy Hospital San Diego lowest San Diego, CA · (619) 294-8111 HC Eval Language Comp/Expres File of Mar 30, 2026 · source file | $119.66 | $478.66 | $38.29–$623.33 | 75% |
| Scripps Green Hospital lowest La Jolla, CA · (858) 554-3600 HC Eval Language Comp/Expres File of Mar 30, 2026 · source file | $119.66 | $478.66 | $38.29–$623.33 | 75% |
| UC San Diego Medical Center San Diego, CA · (619) 543-6222 Evaluation of speech language comprehension and expression only File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $165.00 | $300.00 | $36.00–$405.00 | 45% |
| Paradise Valley Hospital National City, CA · (619) 470-4321 EVAL SPCH, LANG COMP 15 MIN+4 more lines at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $249.00 | $1,607.09 | $107.68–$1,607.09 | 85% |
| UC San Diego Medical Center San Diego, CA · (619) 543-6222 Evaluation of speech sound production with evaluation of language comprehension and expression File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $336.05 | $611.00 | $94.74–$305.50 | 45% |
| Palomar Medical Center Poway Poway, CA · (858) 485-6511 ST X Language Eval File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $361.80 | $603.00 | — | 40% |
| Palomar Medical Center Escondido Escondido, CA ST X Language Eval File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $361.80 | $603.00 | — | 40% |
| Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego San Diego, CA · (858) 576-1700 Rch Speech & Lang Eval Ip 45 Min File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $366.00 | $488.00 | — | 25% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Diego - Clairemont Mesa San Diego, CA · (619) 528-5000 EVAL SPEECH SOUND PRODUCT LANGUAGE COMPREHENSION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $457.08 | $879.00 | — | 48% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Marcos San Marcos, CA · (760) 528-6295 EVAL SPEECH SOUND PRODUCT LANGUAGE COMPREHENSION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $457.08 | $879.00 | — | 48% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Diego - Zion San Diego, CA · (619) 528-5000 EVAL SPEECH SOUND PRODUCT LANGUAGE COMPREHENSION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $457.08 | $879.00 | — | 48% |
| Palomar Medical Center Poway Poway, CA · (858) 485-6511 ST Eval Sound Comp/Expr Units+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $678.89 | $1,131.49 | — | 40% |
| Palomar Medical Center Escondido Escondido, CA ST Eval Sound Comprehension/Express+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $678.89 | $1,131.49 | — | 40% |
Outpatient: lowest $119.66, median $249.00, highest $457.08 — a 3.8× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 12 facilities here, median $263.40. 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 7 of 7 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 speech evaluation is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Speech evaluation explained.