Sed rate (ESR) cost in California

In California, 169 hospitals publish a cash price for sed rate (ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate): from $4.16 to $632.19, with a median of $56.00. The lowest price is at St Elizabeth Community Hospital (Red Bluff). The highest price is 152.0× the lowest.

• The median here, $56.00, is 47% above the US median of $38.00.
• That is 20.7× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($2.70).
• California ranks 41st of 49 states by median, cheapest first.
• 49 of 169 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 85652. Prices for both sides of the body and inpatient prices are not mixed in. Collected Nov 8, 2026. See them on a map