CMS Price Transparency Data

Culture, bacterial

Facility: Essentia Health Sandstone

Billing Code: 87070 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price low confidence

A fair price for this

$16

about 1.8× the $9 Medicare rate · typically $8–$76

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

Below the fair price — a good deal

about $7 under the fair price · 1.0× Medicare

Medicare pays $9 Fair price $16 This hospital $9 Cash price $99 Hospital's list price $134

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other MN hospitals

One of the lower prices — 0 of 8 other MN hospitals charge more for the same procedure.

Cheapest $8 Priciest $9

Black dot = this hospital, among the 9 MN hospitals with a price for this procedure. Full list below.

⚠ The cash price looks unusually high next to the insurance price — it may be the full list price, not a real cash discount. Call to confirm the self-pay rate.

A fair price for a Culture, bacterial is about $16 (about 1.8× the $9 Medicare rate). Essentia Health Sandstone charges insurers about $9, or about $99 in cash — below the fair price — a good deal. Located in Sandstone, MN.

What each insurance company pays

Which insurers have negotiated a price with this hospital for this procedure — and which haven’t.

4 of 6 major insurers have a published price at this hospital

✓ UnitedHealthcare✓ Blue Cross Blue Shield✓ Aetna✓ Cigna HumanaKaiser Permanente

Crossed out = this hospital hasn’t published a negotiated price for that insurer for this procedure. It doesn’t necessarily mean they aren’t accepted — ask your insurer.

Insurance company	Price range	vs. Medicare
UnitedHealthcaremajor	$9 - $122	104%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$9 - $108	104%
Aetnamajor	$114	1323%
Cignamajor	$105 - $107	1218%
HealthPartners	$9 - $107	104%
Medica	$9 - $110	104%
Sanford Health Plan	$57 - $60	661%
Security Health Plan	$9 - $134	104%
UCare	$9 - $88	104%
+ 12 smaller / regional plans	$9 - $103

Government programs also on file: Medicare.

Excludes 2 rental-network / third-party entries (e.g. Multiplan, PHCS) — these are pricing networks, not insurers.

Self-Pay How to get the cash price

Tell the billing desk you want to be billed as self-pay — not through insurance — before your visit.
Ask for the cash / prompt-pay discount in writing, with the exact price (about 99), before you agree to anything.
Get it in writing that they won’t also bill your insurance, so the cash price is what you owe.
Check the CPT code on your bill matches exactly: 87070.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm Essentia Health Sandstone is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 87070.
Confirm the doctor or provider is in-network too — not just the hospital building.
Check your Explanation of Benefits against the hospital’s final itemized bill.

Estimate your out-of-pocket cost

A rough estimate of what you’d pay with insurance (deductible + coinsurance) versus paying the cash price yourself.

How you’d pay

Deductible left to meet ($)

Your coinsurance (%)

Enter your details and press estimate to compare.

Other Procedures at Essentia Health Sandstone

Compare: Culture, bacterial at other MN hospitals

Insurance negotiated median for the same procedure, sorted lowest first.