Shave skin biopsy cost in San Francisco, CA
In San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA, 18 hospitals list a cash price for tangential (shave-style) skin biopsy, one lesion: from $251.08 to $1,058.00, with a median of $576.80. The lowest listed price is at Sequoia Hospital — $325.72 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $552.00 at 133 hospitals.
- The median here, $576.80, is 92% above the US median of $300.00.
- That is 1.4× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($415.32).
- San Francisco, CA ranks 3rd of 4 metro areas in California by median, cheapest first.
- 7 of 18 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 18 facilities across 13 cities for code 11102, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Oct 31, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sequoia Hospital lowest Redwood City, CA · (650) 369-5811 BX SKN TANGENTIAL SNG LES File of Sep 30, 2026 · source file | $251.08 | $736.00 | $71.48–$10,897.00 | 66% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Francisco San Francisco, CA · (415) 833-2646 TANGENTIAL BIOPSY SKIN SINGLE LESION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $576.80 | $1,030.00 | $240.00–$752.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - South San Francisco South San Francisco, CA · (650) 742-3200 TANGENTIAL BIOPSY SKIN SINGLE LESION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $576.80 | $1,030.00 | $240.00–$752.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Antioch Antioch, CA · (925) 813-6500 TANGENTIAL BIOPSY SKIN SINGLE LESION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $576.80 | $1,030.00 | $240.00–$752.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Leandro San Leandro, CA · (510) 454-1000 TANGENTIAL BIOPSY SKIN SINGLE LESION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $576.80 | $1,030.00 | $240.00–$752.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Fnd Hospital - Richmond Campus Richmond, CA · (510) 752-1000 TANGENTIAL BIOPSY SKIN SINGLE LESION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $576.80 | $1,030.00 | $240.00–$752.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Fremont Fremont, CA · (510) 784-4000 TANGENTIAL BIOPSY SKIN SINGLE LESION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $576.80 | $1,030.00 | $240.00–$752.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Rafael San Rafael, CA · (415) 444-2000 TANGENTIAL BIOPSY SKIN SINGLE LESION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $576.80 | $1,030.00 | $240.00–$752.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Oakland/Richmond Oakland, CA · (510) 752-1000 TANGENTIAL BIOPSY SKIN SINGLE LESION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $576.80 | $1,030.00 | $240.00–$752.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Redwood City Redwood City, CA · (650) 299-2000 TANGENTIAL BIOPSY SKIN SINGLE LESION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $576.80 | $1,030.00 | $240.00–$752.00 | 44% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Walnut Creek Walnut Creek, CA · (925) 295-4000 TANGENTIAL BIOPSY SKIN SINGLE LESION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $576.80 | $1,030.00 | $240.00–$752.00 | 44% |
| Mills Health Center San Mateo, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG TANGNTL BX SKIN SINGLE LES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $888.00 | $888.00 | — | — |
| Mills-Peninsula Medical Center Burlingame, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG TANGNTL BX SKIN SINGLE LES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $888.00 | $888.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center Oakland, CA · (510) 655-4000 HCHG TANGNTL BX SKIN SINGLE LES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $888.00 | $888.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Alta Bates Camp Berkeley, CA · (510) 204-4444 HCHG TANGNTL BX SKIN SINGLE LES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $888.00 | $888.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center-Summit Campus-Hawthorne Oakland, CA · (510) 655-4000 HCHG TANGNTL BX SKIN SINGLE LES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $888.00 | $888.00 | — | — |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Herrick Campus Berkeley, CA · (510) 204-4444 HCHG TANGNTL BX SKIN SINGLE LES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $888.00 | $888.00 | — | — |
| Chinese Hospital San Francisco, CA · (415) 677-2480 Biopsy of related skin growth, first growth File of Jul 22, 2026 · source file | $1,058.00 | $1,058.00 | $128.16–$3,218.99 | — |
Outpatient: lowest $251.08, median $576.80, highest $1,058.00 — a 4.2× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 17 facilities here, median $576.80. Inpatient and outpatient prices are not comparable and are kept on separate pages: the inpatient charge covers admission, not the same purchase.
Cash or insurance?
At 12 of 12 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at none is it below every plan's rate. If you have insurance but have not met your deductible, you usually pay your plan's negotiated rate, which falls somewhere in the "Insurers pay" column. Paying cash can cost less, but a cash payment usually does not count toward your deductible. Ask the hospital for both numbers before you book.
What shave skin biopsy is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Shave skin biopsy explained.