Exclusive: V.A. Scandal Hits New Hospital

[merrily]

9. In Massachusetts, I was asked to wait over 3 months for an appointment about a skin cancer

diagnosis or, to be told that I did not have skin cancer, depite my primary care provider's suspicion that I might have it.

I hasten to add, this was at Massachusetts General Hospital, considered one of the best in thw world. And, while my health insurance was not perfect, it was about as close to perfect as it gets in this country. So, 3 months in a non emergency is not unusual for a specialist, even in the private sector and under ideal conditions.

On the other hand, I considered it an emergency because I thought I might damage myself with fear while I waited to see if I had skin cancer or not. (Fortunately, a brilliant and very experienced surgeon, who I had to see for an unrelated reason, assured me the new and very irregularly shaped brown spot was not cancerous, so I never bothered with the dermatologist. It's been 17 years and the surgeon seems to have been correct.)