Precancerous spot removal cost in Los Angeles, CA
In Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA, 20 hospitals list a cash price for destruction of a precancerous skin lesion (actinic keratosis), first lesion: from $42.40 to $1,015.82, with a median of $256.00. The lowest listed price is at UCI Health-Orange — $213.60 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $320.00 at 85 hospitals.
- The median here, $256.00, is 39% above the US median of $184.50.
- That is 1.2× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($204.98).
- Los Angeles, CA has the lowest median of 2 metro areas in California with at least 10 hospitals pricing this code.
- 7 of 20 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 20 facilities across 17 cities for code 17000, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Nov 4, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Nov 26, 2025 and Oct 5, 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 Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UCI Health-Orange lowest Orange, CA · (714) 456-7890 HB DESTRUCTION PREMALIGNANT LESION 1ST File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $42.40 | $106.00 | — | 60% |
| Catalina Island Medical Center Avalon, CA · (310) 510-0700 Destruction of precancer skin growth, 1 growth File of Jul 20, 2026 · source file | $134.40 | $192.00 | $51.84–$514.61 | 30% |
| Providence Cedars Sinai Tarzana Medical Center Tarzana, CA · (818) 881-0800 HC ED DESTRUCT PREMALG LESION FIRST LESION CDM File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $140.00 | $400.00 | — | 65% |
| Providence Holy Cross Medical Center Mission Hills, CA · (818) 365-8051 HC ED DESTRUCT PREMALG LESION FIRST LESION CDM File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $164.50 | $470.00 | — | 65% |
| USC Arcadia Hospital Arcadia, CA · (626) 898-8000 DESTRUCTION PREMLGNT FIRST LES File of Jul 27, 2026 · source file | $220.85 | $631.00 | $130.08–$1,668.00 | 65% |
| Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center Torrance Torrance, CA · (310) 540-7676 HC ED DESTRUCT PREMALG LESION FIRST LESION CDM File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $242.20 | $692.00 | — | 65% |
| Providence Little Co of Mary Medical Center San Pedro San Pedro, CA · (310) 832-3311 HC ED DESTRUCT PREMALG LESION FIRST LESION CDM File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $242.20 | $692.00 | — | 65% |
| Sherman Oaks Hospital Sherman Oaks, CA · (818) 981-7111 ELECTRICAL CAUTERIZATION+1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $256.00 | $167.00 | $50.10–$167.00 | -53% |
| La Palma Intercommunity Hospital La Palma, CA · (714) 670-7400 Hc Destruc Benign/Premal,First Lesion File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $256.00 | $212.96 | $63.89–$212.96 | -20% |
| West Anaheim Medical Center Anaheim, CA · (714) 827-3000 Hc Destruc Benign/Premal,First Lesion File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $256.00 | $212.96 | $63.89–$212.96 | -20% |
| Garden Grove Hospital Medical Center Garden Grove, CA · (714) 537-5160 Hc Destruc Benign/Premal,First Lesion File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $256.00 | $212.96 | $63.89–$212.96 | -20% |
| Saint John's Health Center Santa Monica, CA · (310) 829-5511 HC ED DESTRUCT PREMALG LESION FIRST LESION CDM File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $256.55 | $733.00 | — | 65% |
| St Jude Hospital Fullerton, CA · (714) 992-3000 HC ED DESTRUCT PREMALG LESION FIRST LESION CDM File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $331.68 | $691.00 | — | 52% |
| Providence St Joseph Hospital Orange Orange, CA · (714) 633-9111 HC ED DESTRUCT PREMALG LESION FIRST LESION CDM File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $489.60 | $1,020.00 | — | 52% |
| Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center Burbank, CA · (818) 843-5111 HC ED DESTRUCT PREMALG LESION FIRST LESION CDM File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $523.25 | $1,495.00 | — | 65% |
| Casa Colina Hospital and Centers for Healthcare Pomona, CA · (909) 596-7733 Destruction of precancer skin growth, 1 growth File of Oct 5, 2026 · source file | $704.26 | $541.74 | $100.12–$1,774.00 | -30% |
| USC Kenneth Norris Jr Cancer Hospital Los Angeles, CA Destruction Premalignant Lesion 1St File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $772.75 | $772.75 | — | — |
| Keck Hospital of USC Los Angeles, CA · (323) 442-8656 Destruction Premalignant Lesion 1St File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $823.75 | $823.75 | — | — |
| Mission Hospital Regional Med Center Mission Viejo, CA · (949) 364-1400 HC ED DESTRUCT PREMALG LESION FIRST LESION CDM File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $918.72 | $1,914.00 | — | 52% |
| Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Los Angeles, CA · (310) 423-5000 OUTPATIENT SURGERY CPT GROUP 1+3 more lines at this price File of Nov 26, 2025 · source file | $1,015.82 | $1,562.80 | $247.42–$9,827.82 | 35% |
Outpatient: lowest $42.40, median $256.00, highest $1,015.82 — a 24.0× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 13 facilities here, median $256.55. 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 4 of 8 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.