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Viral Culture Identification

Utah 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 Utah, 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 $47.86 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 $31.62
FacilityA hospital or hospital-owned outpatient department$47.86$45.71 to $126

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $48 · 10th to 90th $23 to $166Professionalmedian $30 · 10th to 90th $23 to $39
$20$50$100facility $48professional $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
$23.44
Median
$67.61
Typical High
$165.96
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$23.44
Median
$30.20
Typical High
$38.90
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$28.84
Median
$35.48
Typical High
$93.33
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$15.85
Median
$23.44
Typical High
$64.57
Regence BlueShield
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$38.90
Median
$38.90
Typical High
$151.36
Regence BlueShield
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$22.91
Median
$28.84
Typical High
$30.20
Select Health
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$23.44
Median
$23.44
Typical High
$23.44
Select Health
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$23.44
Median
$33.88
Typical High
$43.65
U of Utah Health Plan
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$19.95
Median
$29.51
Typical High
$51.29
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$16.98
Median
$16.98
Typical High
$21.88
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$14.13
Median
$19.95
Typical High
$46.77

Where Utah 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.

Utah· 43rd 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.