HIDA scan cost in California

In California, 195 hospitals publish a cash price for HIDA scan: nuclear imaging of the liver, bile ducts and gallbladder: from $230.75 to $12,087.11, with a median of $1,778.32. The lowest price is at Scripps Green Hospital (La Jolla) and 4 other hospitals. The highest price is 52.4× the lowest.

• The median here, $1,778.32, is 37% above the US median of $1,299.64.
• That is 4.4× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($408.43).
• California ranks 43rd of 50 states by median, cheapest first.
• 55 of 195 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.

California law (Health and Safety Code §127405): if you are uninsured or have high medical costs and your family income is at or below 400% of the federal poverty level, a hospital may not expect you to pay more than it would expect from Medicare or Medi-Cal, whichever is greater. That can be less than the cash prices below; ask the hospital for its discount payment policy. A separate physician fee may still apply. Other states' laws.

Outpatient cash prices, one line per hospital — its lowest listed price for code 78226. Prices for both sides of the body and inpatient prices are not mixed in. Collected Nov 8, 2026. See them on a map