Precancerous spot removal cost in Duluth, MN
In Duluth, MN-WI, 10 hospitals list a cash price for destruction of a precancerous skin lesion (actinic keratosis), first lesion: from $21.04 to $303.55, with a median of $180.84. The lowest listed price is at Community Memorial Hospital — $159.80 less than the median here. Across Minnesota, the median is $180.84 at 47 hospitals.
- The median here, $180.84, is about the same as the US median of $184.50.
- That is 0.9× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($204.98).
- Duluth, MN has the lowest median of 2 metro areas in Minnesota with at least 10 hospitals pricing this code.
- Every hospital here lists a cash price below its full list price.
Cash prices at 10 facilities across 7 cities for code 17000, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 27, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jan 1, 2026 and Apr 1, 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 Duluth, MN-WI.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Community Memorial Hospital lowest Cloquet, MN · (218) 879-4641 FP-SC FC,DESTRT PREMALG LESION File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $21.04 | $32.87 | $32.87–$131.50 | 36% |
| Community Memorial Hospital Cloquet, MN · (218) 879-4641 FP-DESTRT PREMALIGNT LSN W/FC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $63.12 | $98.63 | $32.87–$131.50 | 36% |
| Community Memorial Hospital Cloquet, MN · (218) 879-4641 FP-DESTRUCT PREMALIGNT LESION+3 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $84.16 | $131.50 | $32.87–$131.50 | 36% |
| Range Regional Health Services Hibbing, MN · (218) 362-6730 HC DESTRUCT PREMALIGNANT LESION, FIRST File of Jan 29, 2026 · source file | $96.05 | $226.00 | $77.97–$3,379.37 | 58% |
| Essentia Health Virginia Virginia, MN · (218) 741-3340 DESTRUC BENIGN/PREMAL,1ST LESION File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $172.07 | $274.00 | $63.02–$247.70 | 37% |
| Essentia Health St. Mary's Children's Hospital Duluth, MN DESTRUC BENIGN/PREMAL,1ST LESION File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $180.84 | $274.00 | $90.69–$235.64 | 34% |
| Essentia Health St. Mary's Medical Center Duluth, MN · (218) 786-3574 DESTRUC BENIGN/PREMAL,1ST LESION File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $180.84 | $274.00 | $90.69–$235.64 | 34% |
| Essentia Health Duluth Duluth, MN · (218) 786-2652 DESTRUC BENIGN/PREMAL,1ST LESION File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $180.84 | $274.00 | $90.69–$235.64 | 34% |
| Essentia Health Moose Lake Moose Lake, MN · (218) 786-1367 DESTRUC BENIGN/PREMAL,1ST LESION File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $202.49 | $274.00 | $109.05–$247.97 | 26% |
| Essentia Health Northern Pines Aurora, MN · (218) 229-4222 DESTRUC BENIGN/PREMAL,1ST LESION File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $202.49 | $274.00 | $105.19–$274.00 | 26% |
| Essentia Health St Marys Hospital-Superior Superior, WI · (715) 817-7000 DESTRUC BENIGN/PREMAL,1ST LESION File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $202.49 | $274.00 | $87.68–$247.97 | 26% |
| Aspirus St. Luke’s Hospital Duluth, MN · (218) 249-2449 Fac Dstrj All Prmlg 1st Les File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $303.55 | $558.00 | — | 46% |
Outpatient: lowest $21.04, median $180.84, highest $303.55 — a 14.4× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 4 facilities here, median $134.06. 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 9 of 9 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at 1 it is 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 precancerous spot removal is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Precancerous spot removal explained.