Don't medical staff in the US take holidays? Here medical centres (except for emergencies) are closed on public holidays.
Here they're closed for the big ones -- Easter, Fourth of July, Thanksgiving -- but President's Day isn't a big one. All that closes on the minor holidays are government services and, sometimes, banks.
I had my yearly skin cancer checkup on Tuesday. He took one biopsy just in front of my ear and I complained (not to him) about the cost $415.
He rang me yesterday, It is a basal skin cancer. Quite common for me. Last year, one on my arm cost just over $800 to remove. Because of the location on my face, this one will need a full day in surgery as he takes the minimum area then does the lab tests on site before closing the wound.
Estimated cost $3000. I am not a happy chappy.
That's interesting. I had two surgeries in 2015 for minor skin cancer -- one basal and one squamous. The first skin cancer surgery was $2,400 and I assume the second was a similar price. I had to pay for them, but I used up my $6,500 deductible between the two surgeries and other random medical expenses, so I capitalized on the situation and got cataract surgery, knowing I'd need it eventually, basically for free.
Both surgeries were on my head, so I feared winding up with a bald spot. But the surgeon used something called the Mohs technique, the standard for skin-cancer surgeries here. They cut out the cancer and then pull a V-shaped flap of other skin over to cover the wound (sorry if this is too graphic). The result is that you can barely see any scar from the surgery -- certainly none that a casual observer would notice.
Anyway, when I had to pay for the surgery out of pocket I went on Facebook to complain and ask friends in other countries (mostly Brokies!) what they would have to pay for something similar. They all said the surgery would be free, or close to it.
As my doctor performed the surgery we got to
drinking and talking about politics (you're totally awake throughout) and he turned out to be pretty left-leaning. I mentioned the thing about how I'd have to pay for this surgery out of pocket, but my Facebook friends from Europe and Australia all said they wouldn't have to.
That's true, the doctor said, but they wouldn't have gotten the Mohs technique.
I don't know if that's true or not. In this case, though, while I don't have a lot of extra cash lying around, I'd rather scrape together $2,400 and not wind up with a bald spot.
So brian, I'm interested to hear about your situation: a) That you do have to pay for things and b) Do they do the Mohs technique there? From your description (take a minimum area, lab tests on site) it sounds like it.