When Haines resident Greg Podsiki was diagnosed with bladder cancer in 2020, doctors told him he would need to go to Juneau for five laparoscopic surgeries under anesthesia and another half dozen intrusive follow ups.
Luckily, doctors caught Podsiki’s cancer in time, but he faced a different sort of challenge: paying for it. Podsiki ultimately traveled to Juneau a dozen times, paying thousands of dollars for flights as prices surged to more than $200 each…