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Manual Blood Sedimentation Rate Test (ESR)

North Carolina 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 July 2026.

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

$6.46

Typical negotiated rate. In North Carolina, July 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $6.46 for this service. The price depends on where it is billed: about $4.27 from a physician practice, and about $14.13 from a hospital or other facility. The two figures are alternatives, not parts of one bill.

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 8 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.

Where it's billed changes the price

Billed byTypicalRange
Physician practiceA doctor's office, clinic or independent provider$4.27$3.39 to $6.92
FacilityA hospital or hospital-owned outpatient department$14.13$4.57 to $60.26

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $14 · 10th to 90th $3 to $81Professionalmedian $4 · 10th to 90th $3 to $12
$2$5$10$20$50$100facility $14professional $4

Distribution of negotiated rates across all payers (price axis is log-scale). Each curve is scaled to its own total: facility and professional rates are different services, shown together to compare where they cluster. Need provider-level prices or 24+ months of history? Contact us.

Rates by insurance carrier

Insurance Carrier
Aetna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$3.39
Median
$14.13
Typical High
$81.28
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$3.24
Median
$4.27
Typical High
$12.02
Ambetter
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$1.07
Median
$3.47
Typical High
$9.55
BCBS
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$7.59
Median
$15.14
Typical High
$15.14
BCBS
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$2.75
Median
$3.80
Typical High
$7.41
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$2.95
Median
$8.13
Typical High
$19.50
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$2.00
Median
$2.95
Typical High
$5.89
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$2.95
Median
$3.55
Typical High
$6.92
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$2.95
Median
$3.09
Typical High
$6.92
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$2.82
Median
$4.57
Typical High
$5.01
Oscar Health
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$58.88
Median
$58.88
Typical High
$58.88
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$2.09
Median
$5.01
Typical High
$6.76
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$2.57
Median
$3.47
Typical High
$5.01
Wellcare
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$60.26
Median
$60.26
Typical High
$100.00

Where North Carolina sits

The same service costs 9.5 times more in West Virginia than in Washington, DC. 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.

North Carolina· 16th of 51

$6.46

WV $30.90DC $3.24

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.