Do they not repair broken implants?

[warrenw123]

A couple months ago my doctor said he had to put a new implant in cause mine stopped working and he could hear air in the bulb when squeezing it. I can't afford to have it done now. I have to pay the doctor's fee of $5k and then let the hospital bill me. I guess even if they did repair them then I would still have the same cost and may be harder since he is not sure where it is broken at to let the fluid out.

I guess I'll have to try to save soon. My divorce is filed and won't even bother trying to date till the implant is fixed.

I did ask this before but the thread ended up being about insurance. I'm not sure exactly which model I have. Its an AMS 700 I know but may be some letters in there somewhere. Got it 4 years ago with double cylinders. Is there a particular model or even another make that has a longer implant like 2 inches more? I figured since I am paying for it then I can ask for something specific if they will do it.

Thanks!

[dg_moore]

As I understand it, the implants themselves are warranted by the manufacturer, but the surgeon and hospital expenses are not. Your insurance may or may not help with that - you should ask your surgeon to check that out (the doctor's office will probably have better luck communicating with the insurer than you would directly). Obviously if you are having an AMS replaced under warranty, then you will be given an AMS replacement. As to getting a longer implant, only your surgeon can recommend what size to use - you can't just splice on two more inches, unless you were undersized by two inches in your original surgery, which is highly unlikely. You can only get as much length as your anatomy will allow, which is most likely spelled out in the original surgical notes.

[warrenw123]

I no longer have insurance so I'm on self pay now. I'll probably just save up the $5K and have it replaced. I'm a software developer and I have a startup that is going to do well so I'll have to reserve some of the funds for this.

Thanks

[alibaba]

I'm not questioning your position here but it may well be cheaper to buy insurance that pay the $5k and keep in mind, that $5k could suddenly inflate to $50k if you have complications. Glad your startup is doing well!

[warrenw123]

When I had the implant put in I had United Healthcare and it covered all of it. I left that job I had it through and lost the insurance. I then had BCBS recently and they did not cover it. So how can I fins out ahead of time if an insurance policy will cover this for replacing it? Would I need to call any of them and ask? Or does anyone know of coverage I can buy myself to cover this? I would definitely go that way if possible.

Thanks,

Warren

[alibaba]

I spent 3 days with insurance brokers trying to find a different insurance last year. Every single policy offered, I was told I would have to buy the policy, receive the printed book before I could learn what they cover. I do not buy grab bags. I do not know what to tell you there. I talked to brokers in 3 states.