go back

Manual Blood Sedimentation Rate Test (ESR)

Georgia rates for HCPCS 85651

This blood test measures how quickly red blood cells settle to the bottom of a test tube over a set period of time, using a manual laboratory method rather than an automated instrument. A faster settling rate can be a sign of inflammation somewhere in the body, though it does not point to a specific cause.

Rates data updated October 2026.

How much does Manual Blood Sedimentation Rate Test (ESR) cost?

$4.27

Typical negotiated rate. In Georgia, October 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $4.27 for this service. The price depends on where it is billed: about $3.80 from a physician practice, and about $5.37 from a hospital or other facility.

These are rates insurers have negotiated with providers, not the amount a patient is billed. What you owe depends on your plan's deductible and coinsurance. Based on rates published by 7 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.

Prices by location type

Billed byTypicalRange
Physician practiceA doctor's office, clinic or independent provider$3.80$1.95 to $5.62
FacilityA hospital or hospital-owned outpatient department$5.37$4.27 to $8.71

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $5 · 10th to 90th $3 to $15Professionalmedian $4 · 10th to 90th $1 to $7
$1$2$5$10$20$50facility $5professional $4

Distribution of negotiated rates across all payers (price axis is log-scale). Need provider-level prices or 24+ months of history? Contact us.

Rates by insurance carrier

Insurance Carrier
Aetna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2.82
Median
$4.07
Typical High
$7.59
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2.82
Median
$3.72
Typical High
$7.41
Ambetter
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2.14
Median
$2.63
Typical High
$8.13
Anthem BCBS
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$3.47
Median
$5.01
Typical High
$14.79
Anthem BCBS
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1.10
Median
$2.63
Typical High
$7.08
CareSource
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2.88
Median
$2.88
Typical High
$2.88
CareSource
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2.75
Median
$4.27
Typical High
$4.27
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$4.27
Median
$9.33
Typical High
$22.39
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2.14
Median
$4.07
Typical High
$6.76
Kaiser Permanente
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$4.68
Median
$6.46
Typical High
$12.88
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1.12
Median
$1.12
Typical High
$10.47
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2.57
Median
$4.90
Typical High
$7.59
2 more rates with less common billing modifiers

A modifier changes what was billed, for example a reduced or repeated service. Each of these modifiers carries under 10% of the published rates for this code. Modifier combinations, and modifiers with fewer than 30 rates for a carrier, are not listed.

Insurance Carrier
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
52 · Reduced service
Typical Low
$1.41
Median
$1.70
Typical High
$2.04
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
53 · Discontinued
Typical Low
$0.56
Median
$0.68
Typical High
$0.85

Where Georgia sits

The same service costs 4.4 times more in Alaska than in New Jersey. Every bar is a state, most expensive first. Touch or drag across it to read any state, then open that state for its carriers and full range.

Georgia· 32nd of 51

$4.27

AK $13.80NJ $3.16

Median negotiated rate in each state, from every insurer that publishes one. States where no insurer publishes a rate for this service are not shown.