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Darkfield Microscope Exam for Spirochetes

Alabama rates for HCPCS 87166

Examination of fluid or scrapings under a microscope arranged so that light strikes the sample from the side, making extremely thin corkscrew-shaped bacteria stand out bright against a dark background. It is used mainly to look for the organism that causes syphilis in fluid taken from a sore, and it can give an answer straight away.

Rates data updated July 2026.

How much does Darkfield Microscope Exam for Spirochetes cost?

$11.22

Typical negotiated rate. In Alabama, July 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $11.22 for this service. The price depends on where it is billed: about $10.72 from a physician practice, and about $12.59 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 4 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$10.72$9.33 to $12.88
FacilityA hospital or hospital-owned outpatient department$12.59$10.72 to $13.18

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $13 · 10th to 90th $10 to $17Professionalmedian $11 · 10th to 90th $8 to $13
$10.0$100.0$1.0Kfacility $13professional $11

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
$11.22
Median
$12.88
Typical High
$17.38
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$7.59
Median
$10.72
Typical High
$12.88
BCBS
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$10.00
Median
$11.75
Typical High
$15.85
BCBS
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$7.41
Median
$7.41
Typical High
$11.48
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$8.91
Median
$12.02
Typical High
$36.31
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$5.01
Median
$6.92
Typical High
$40.74
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$6.61
Median
$10.23
Typical High
$14.45
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$4.79
Median
$6.46
Typical High
$15.85

Where Alabama sits

The same service costs 2.4 times more in Hawaii than in Washington, DC. Every bar is a state, most expensive first. Pick one to see its carriers and full range.

Alabama $11.22 · 26th of 51
HI $20.42DC $8.51

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.