Cost of implant - insurance won't cover anything!

[rglassva]

As I start to think about the remote possibility of an implant - cost being the biggest consideration - I'm hoping some of you bionic boys can help me with some research. How much did it cost for the entire procedure? Since, if I take the plunge, I'll be paying everything out of pocket, I'm probably most interested in hearing from those that had it done as an out-patient procedure since I understand that most of the cost actually comes from staying overnight in the hospital. For those that did have it done as an outpatient - where did you have it done (and by whom) as I'll likely have to travel somewhere - I don't believe anyone here in Richmond, VA does it as outpatient. Thanks in advance for any information you can provide. Rick

[rlm1818]

Go to the advanced search function on this site. Search in the implant forum for "insurance". Do it first for topic titles only. You will get some topics with helpful info. Search on message text too, and you will get a lot of hits, but maybe more than you need.

[p1s8d2]

You might want to consider waiting until after the first of the year and select an insurance policy from the secondary market. Medicare covers the surgery for most men, but a different insurance policy or a supplemental one might be of some benefit to you financially. My implant cost over $20,000 and it was covered %100 through Blue Cross. This is especially important since staying overnight is most helpful with recovery after the surgery. I concede that everyone is different and each person has only so many resources.

Good luck

[Dave92014]

As I start to think about the remote possibility of an implant - cost being the biggest consideration - I'm hoping some of you bionic boys can help me with some research. How much did it cost for the entire procedure? Since, if I take the plunge, I'll be paying everything out of pocket, I'm probably most interested in hearing from those that had it done as an out-patient procedure since I understand that most of the cost actually comes from staying overnight in the hospital. For those that did have it done as an outpatient - where did you have it done (and by whom) as I'll likely have to travel somewhere - I don't believe anyone here in Richmond, VA does it as outpatient. Thanks in advance for any information you can provide. Rick

Someplace on FT I read a post more than a year ago that a doctor in Cleveland will do the implant for a fixed cost for everything which I think was about $12,500. That is the lowest price I have seen posted. You can find it with some searches.

I don't know how much my overnight stay was but I don't think it was a large part of the cost. My doc told me the implant device cost $10K but from what I could tell of the medicare payments it was about $8K. MY total was about $13.5K. They billed the overnight stay as a "23 hour stay" which is less than a full day. I would recommend the overnight stay if possible. The biggest concern is to not get an infection. And they feed you IV antibiotics overnight to keep that bug away.

Almost everyone stays overnight. There were some posts by a guy about a year ago who did not stay overnight, lived alone, and was waiting in front of his house the next morning for a friend to drive him to the doc. While waiting he fainted, fell on his face and did damage which cost him an ambulance trip and a lot more expense than staying overnight. So if you don't stay overnight at least have a care person staying with you.

I don't know what your insurance situation is but I suggest you look into Obamacare and see if it offers some new options that can help you out.

Best wishes,
Dave

[rlm1818]

I would recommend the overnight stay if possible. The biggest concern is to not get an infection. And they feed you IV antibiotics overnight to keep that bug away.

Almost everyone stays overnight.

I'm going to disagree somewhat with that. There are plenty of us who had day surgery. Mostly in surgi-centers, but sometimes in a hospital. Yeah, there are plenty who stay overnight too. I was very happy to be in a surgi-center. In at 10am, out by 4pm.

Here's what my doc posts on his website about hospitals and infection:

"At the surgical center Dr. Eid has significant control over the sanitary conditions and the overall patient experience. While hospitals are sanitary, exposure to other sick and infected patients drastically increases the risk of infection during penile implantation. Exposure to virulent bacteria is greater in hospital operating rooms and during post-operative recovery than at the surgical center. At high-volume hospitals there is heavy traffic of medical professionals and patients, which also jeopardizes infection-free recovery.

Large institutions may be associated with teaching hospitals with residents or doctors in training. In such cases, these less-experienced professionals may be involved in the surgical process and/or the administration of anesthesia. Their presence in the operating room also slows the time necessary to complete the procedure, thereby increasing the patient’s risk of exposure."

So, different opinions on this subject.

Regarding the Cleveland Clinic, doing the search I suggested above leads to information about it. So would searching on "Cleveland", or "Cleveland Clinic.