Here medicine is free, nothing costs, but it is more complicated. A lot of equipment is broken, they break and there are no spare parts to fix them and many times we have to end up paying in some way the doctor or technician who is going to do the test to be able to solve it quickly. Currently there is a shortage of everything in public health and almost everything has to be paid for. So free of charge is between " " and " ".
There was a time when everything worked better, but now everything is very depressed and with few resources.
I can't imagine being sick there and needing all those exams but not being able to get them. I'm really sorry to hear about the challenges you're facing with the healthcare system. It's heartbreaking that even though medical care is supposed to be free, it's so complicated and difficult. It must be incredibly frustrating to deal with broken equipment, shortages, and having to pay extra to get the care you need. I hope things improve soon for you and everyone else dealing with these hardships.