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Viral Culture Identification

Iowa rates for HCPCS 87255

This is a laboratory test that attempts to grow a virus from a patient sample in living cells, then identifies it using methods other than watching for the visible changes it causes to those cells. It is one way to confirm a viral infection, though it has largely been supplemented by faster molecular tests in many settings.

Rates data updated July 2026.

How much does Viral Culture Identification cost?

$33.88

Typical negotiated rate. In Iowa, July 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $33.88 for this service. The price depends on where it is billed: about $28.18 from a physician practice, and about $64.57 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 7 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$28.18$22.39 to $77.62
FacilityA hospital or hospital-owned outpatient department$64.57$33.88 to $91.20

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $65 · 10th to 90th $26 to $162Professionalmedian $28 · 10th to 90th $20 to $224
$20$50$100$200facility $65professional $28

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
$26.30
Median
$79.43
Typical High
$194.98
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$20.42
Median
$26.30
Typical High
$223.87
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$41.69
Median
$66.07
Typical High
$81.28
Hally Health
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$33.88
Median
$83.18
Typical High
$144.54
Medica
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$33.88
Median
$43.65
Typical High
$107.15
Medica
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$20.42
Median
$40.74
Typical High
$89.13
Midlands
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$41.69
Median
$44.67
Typical High
$44.67
Midlands
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$41.69
Median
$41.69
Typical High
$41.69
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$33.88
Median
$33.88
Typical High
$77.62
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$20.42
Median
$28.18
Typical High
$85.11
Wellmark
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$26.92
Median
$33.88
Typical High
$33.88

Where Iowa sits

The same service costs 3.0 times more in Alaska 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.

Iowa· 27th of 51

$33.88

AK $75.86DC $25.12

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.