Best country for jaw surgery?

[wcom939]

When researching the surgery before I got it I read through a few articles and medical papers. Alot of times the US and UK are used as metrics and apparently as much as 5% of the entire population of each country gets the surgery. South Korea does the surgery ALOT for cosmetic purposes however there are few medical articles coming out of South Korea mainly just news articles.

I don't believe the UK has such thing as a private option? I believe the reason it's covered versus braces is medical versus dental, with the surgery being considered a medical procedure and the braces a dental one. The NHS I don't believe covers many dental procedures.

You would have to ask your surgeon but I can't believe the entire cost is only 8k, as in I have to assume there were some portions of the hospital bill the national health policy covered and the portions they did'nt were considered out of pocket unless you had a private insurance and then they would reimburse you whatever they saw fit. If it is 8k I have to admit I'm rather jeolous, although in fairness my US insurance approved the surgery but the out of pocket bill if they did'nt would've run about 10-16k just for the surgery I shudder to think of the hospital bill cost.

[SingleJawMelb]

In practice I was able to get my single jaw surgey completed for around $5-6k out of pock. I'm not a resident of Australia, I didn't go through the public system, I'm just a (legit) student. I was able to claim a small percentage back from my (complulsory) private health insurance and nothing via the public purse.

My surgeon works in the public system, was educated at Stanford, he's Australian and I paid the same as an Australian resident did. I think the cost is as straight forward as what I've described. The $8k was for wisdom teeth removal and also surgey. Gas man was an extra $2k and hospital was perhaps $600 per night - I didn't see the bill.

Give me the figure that an American would pay for BSSO surgey.

The Uk has private doctors and surgeons. Everyone has the right to be treated via the NHS, they don't force its residents to take out private health insurance. Private doctors just charge whatever they want and I believe they have nothing to do with NHS services. It can be mixed in Aus.

With regards to dental, it's free (at the point of service) until the age of 16 and then the patient pays a subsidised rate.

Everything is at the mercy of the NHS and everything is done at the chepeast way possible. If you have a bad tooth they will extract, not save etc.

With regards to my teeth, it's a medical not cosmetic reason. I had an open bite, that (maybe) needed to be corrected. A surgeon correcting the bite but not moving the teeth so they align properly sounds stupid. My teeth were crooked. A lot of surgey would be reduced by ortho work with the teeth.

[perfectmoon]

check out medigo com

[TatyanaZ]

I know Alexander Antipov has a practice in Sac area California. I did a lot of research before I decided on a surgeon. He also has a practice in Moscow, Russia. So you can have your surgery overseas (CA accredited surgeon with overseas cost) and still see him for your PO checks in California. They have a team of doctors who are well known and established in Europe that work together. Let me know if you want his info. I am scheduled for him to do my surgery end of Jan 2017.

[TatyanaZ]

I know Alexander Antipov has a practice in Sac area California. I did a lot of research before I decided on a surgeon. He also has a practice in Moscow, Russia. So you can have your surgery overseas (CA accredited surgeon with overseas cost) and still see him for your PO checks in California. They have a team of doctors who are well known and established in Europe that work together. Let me know if you want his info. I am scheduled for him to do my surgery end of Jan 2017.

[perfectmoon]

I partially agree with TatyanaZ, I think When it comes to elective operations, it is much more important to pick the right surgeon.

[g01]

[quote="perfectmoon"]check out medigo com[/quote]

+1

[Nellyfizzle]

You should come to South Africa to have it done. We have some of the best doctors in the world here and the exchange rate for you will be absolutely marvelous. I would recommend you researching Dr Kevin Adams and Dr Craig Greeff who are working from Claremont, Cape Town. That way you could have an amazing holiday as well as a well respected Surgeon whom you could trust. You would probably pay more in USA for someone who couldn't come close to them.

[bighoss]

Much thanks for the explanation of insurance coverage. The surgeon's office has a person who handles insurance, but she didn't mention anything about any portion of the bill being forgiven. Any chance you're in CA and have had a good experience w a surgeon here?

I had double jaw surgery with Dr. David Bell of Kaiser Permanente Southern California. If you're in the area or willing to go to Orange County, Dr. Bell is undoubtedly a surgeon to consider. Arguably the best in the Kaiser network which is worth its weight in gold considering how easy Kaiser is with maxillofacial surgery. Check my post history for an outline of my process with Dr. Bell.

After reading your posts, it seems the lack of insurance cooperation with surgeons is your problem. With my Kaiser plan I paid $290 for my surgery/overnight intensive care unit stay.

[daredevil655]

[quote=TatyanaZ post_id=487040 time=1478055023 user_id=28531]
I know Alexander Antipov has a practice in Sac area California. I did a lot of research before I decided on a surgeon. He also has a practice in Moscow, Russia. So you can have your surgery overseas (CA accredited surgeon with overseas cost) and still see him for your PO checks in California. They have a team of doctors who are well known and established in Europe that work together. Let me know if you want his info. I am scheduled for him to do my surgery end of Jan 2017.
[/quote]

Hi Tatyanaz, did you have a good experience with Dr. Antipov. HOw was the staff before, during, after the surgery. I'm leaning toward Dr. Antipov and would like to hear from your experience. Thanks.

[JoeA]

Anyone have experience getting insurance to approve this surgery? What was justification? I was quoted over $100,000 including hospital stay and am considering going out of country if insurance won't cover.

[academiannut]

You pay more in the U.S. because our health system is so terrible. Well, you often pay more, but there are so many different health systems its impossible to know. I spent hours on the phones with health insurance companies trying to find out what they'd pay for different procedures before I signed up for this and some of them simply had no answer.

Medical costs in the U.S. are deliberately opaque to users and a large part of the burden is shifted on us. I mean, my employer and I together pay about $10,000 in premiums a year (employer pays 2/3s, I pay 1/3) and that's before we even start in on deductibles and co-pays.

So - I really hope you find a good solution. But I think the reality is that most Americans pay more for health care than Aussies, Canadians, British, etc.

[academiannut]

I meant to say to JoeA -

It really depends on what health coverage you have and what your reasons are for needing it done. If your jaws are noticeably out of whack, it's probably due to a covered condition and it's a case of figuring out how to document it, and making sure your insurance does cover orthognathic surgery.

If you google whatever insurance you have, you should be able to find their orthognathic surgery policy, which should list the types of conditions they cover.

[race4brace]

No experiences with South Korean surgeons? I’m new here by the way!