Critical care (first hour) cost in San Francisco, CA
In San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA, 26 hospitals list a cash price for critical care, first 30 to 74 minutes: from $1,419.71 to $9,840.00, with a median of $5,909.68. The lowest listed price is at St. Rose Hospital — $4,489.97 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $5,487.56 at 206 hospitals.
- The median here, $5,909.68, is 193% above the US median of $2,018.81.
- That is 7.0× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($843.92).
- San Francisco, CA ranks 4th of 5 metro areas in California by median, cheapest first.
- 12 of 26 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 26 facilities across 18 cities for code 99291, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Oct 31, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 23, 2026 and Sep 30, 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 Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Rose Hospital lowest Hayward, CA · (510) 782-6200 CATEGORYVIFIRST3074MIN File of Feb 23, 2026 · source file | $1,419.71 | $4,732.35 | $1,107.00–$4,022.50 | 70% |
| Chinese Hospital San Francisco, CA · (415) 677-2480 Critical care, first 30-74 minutes File of Jul 22, 2026 · source file | $4,471.00 | $4,471.00 | $174.42–$8,047.80 | — |
| Stanford Health Care Tri-Valley Pleasanton, CA · (925) 847-3000 Critical Care 30-74 Min File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $4,738.40 | $11,846.00 | — | 60% |
| Sequoia Hospital Redwood City, CA · (650) 369-5811 ER CRITICAL CARE 30-74MIN File of Sep 30, 2026 · source file | $5,102.02 | $14,956.00 | $216.64–$20,118.00 | 66% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Antioch Antioch, CA · (925) 813-6500 CRITICAL CARE ILL/INJURED PATIENT INIT 30-74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,909.68 | $10,553.00 | $6,260.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - South San Francisco South San Francisco, CA · (650) 742-3200 CRITICAL CARE ILL/INJURED PATIENT INIT 30-74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,909.68 | $10,553.00 | $6,260.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Oakland/Richmond Oakland, CA · (510) 752-1000 CRITICAL CARE ILL/INJURED PATIENT INIT 30-74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,909.68 | $10,553.00 | $6,260.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Leandro San Leandro, CA · (510) 454-1000 CRITICAL CARE ILL/INJURED PATIENT INIT 30-74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,909.68 | $10,553.00 | $6,260.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Francisco San Francisco, CA · (415) 833-2646 CRITICAL CARE ILL/INJURED PATIENT INIT 30-74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,909.68 | $10,553.00 | $6,260.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Fnd Hospital - Richmond Campus Richmond, CA · (510) 752-1000 CRITICAL CARE ILL/INJURED PATIENT INIT 30-74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,909.68 | $10,553.00 | $6,260.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Fremont Fremont, CA · (510) 784-4000 CRITICAL CARE ILL/INJURED PATIENT INIT 30-74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,909.68 | $10,553.00 | $6,260.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Walnut Creek Walnut Creek, CA · (925) 295-4000 CRITICAL CARE ILL/INJURED PATIENT INIT 30-74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,909.68 | $10,553.00 | $6,260.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Rafael San Rafael, CA · (415) 444-2000 CRITICAL CARE ILL/INJURED PATIENT INIT 30-74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,909.68 | $10,553.00 | $6,260.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Redwood City Redwood City, CA · (650) 299-2000 CRITICAL CARE ILL/INJURED PATIENT INIT 30-74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,909.68 | $10,553.00 | $6,260.00 | 44% |
| MarinHealth Medical Center Greenbrae, CA · (415) 925-7900 CRITICAL CARE; FIRST 30-74 MINUTES File of Mar 26, 2026 · source file | $9,192.60 | $15,321.00 | $721.00–$7,964.19 | 40% |
| MarinHealth Medical Center Greenbrae, CA · (415) 925-7900 CRITICAL CARE FIRST HOUR File of Mar 26, 2026 · source file | $9,744.16 | $16,240.26 | $721.00–$7,964.19 | 40% |
| Sutter Delta Medical Center Antioch, CA · (925) 779-7200 HCHG ED CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $9,840.00 | $9,840.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Alta Bates Camp Berkeley, CA · (510) 204-4444 HCHG ED CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $9,840.00 | $9,840.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center Oakland, CA · (510) 655-4000 HCHG ED CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $9,840.00 | $9,840.00 | — | — |
| California Pacific Medical Ctr-Davies Campus Hospital San Francisco, CA · (415) 600-6000 HCHG ED CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $9,840.00 | $9,840.00 | — | — |
| California Pacific Medical Center- Van Ness Campus San Francisco, CA · (415) 600-6000 HCHG ED CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $9,840.00 | $9,840.00 | — | — |
| Eden Medical Center Castro Valley, CA · (510) 537-1234 HCHG TRAUMA CC 1ST 30-74 MN+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $9,840.00 | $9,840.00 | — | — |
| Mills-Peninsula Medical Center Burlingame, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG ED CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $9,840.00 | $9,840.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Herrick Campus Berkeley, CA · (510) 204-4444 HCHG ED CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $9,840.00 | $9,840.00 | — | — |
| Mills Health Center San Mateo, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG ED CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $9,840.00 | $9,840.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center-Summit Campus-Hawthorne Oakland, CA · (510) 655-4000 HCHG ED CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $9,840.00 | $9,840.00 | — | — |
| Novato Community Hospital Novato, CA · (415) 209-1300 HCHG ED CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $9,840.00 | $9,840.00 | — | — |
Outpatient: lowest $1,419.71, median $5,909.68, highest $9,840.00 — a 6.9× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 25 facilities here, median $5,909.68. 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 13 of 14 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at 10 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 critical care (first hour) is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Critical care (first hour) explained.