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Viral Culture Identification

Maryland 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?

$30.20

Typical negotiated rate. In Maryland, July 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $30.20 for this service. The price depends on where it is billed: about $29.51 from a physician practice, and about $135 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 6 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$29.51$25.12 to $34.67
FacilityA hospital or hospital-owned outpatient department$135$43.65 to $170

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $135 · 10th to 90th $22 to $178Professionalmedian $30 · 10th to 90th $21 to $132
$20$50$100$200facility $135professional $30

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
$25.12
Median
$134.90
Typical High
$177.83
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$22.39
Median
$29.51
Typical High
$131.83
CareFirst
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$10.23
Median
$26.92
Typical High
$33.11
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$17.78
Median
$23.44
Typical High
$43.65
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$18.62
Median
$33.88
Typical High
$83.18
Kaiser Permanente
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$32.36
Median
$38.90
Typical High
$51.29
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$14.13
Median
$16.22
Typical High
$25.70
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$15.14
Median
$20.42
Typical High
$31.62
Wellpoint
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$13.18
Median
$23.44
Typical High
$51.29

Where Maryland 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.

Maryland· 45th of 51

$30.20

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.