Cataract surgery deals with the operation of the dysfunctional natural eye lens followed by the implantation of the intraocular lens. It generally takes five minutes to operate the eye. The process doesn’t cause pain and facilitates the quick recovery of vision.

The eye surgeons are well aware of the fact that every patient has unique visual needs and likewise unique approach is used to treat their problem. The complete cataract surgery process has different stages which include diagnosis, counseling, pre-operative testing, intraocular lens selection, managing the hyperopic and myopic astigmatism and enhancement of the corneal refractive after the surgery.

The cataract surgery cost varies depending on the services provided by the health insurance companies. The cost includes the basic package, co-payments, and deductibles. Post-operative care for 90 days is covered in the basic package without other additional costs. The patients need to pay for the medical costs such as bifocals and eye medications. Some parts of these additional costs are included in the insurance coverage.

The cataract surgery cost is calculated depending on the type of package. There are two packages, which are basic package and premium package.

Premium cataract surgery cost: The premium cataract surgery is a wonderful solution for people who want to get optimized results for vision. The intraocular lenses with sophisticated features make the cost high. The estimated surgery cost is $500 to $5000 for on eye. The premium surgery reduces the dependence of the people on glasses in contrast to the basic cataract surgery. To know about the complete cost and deductibles of the premium surgery, it is wise to contact the insurer.

Basic cataract surgery cost: The basic surgery cost improves the vision but it doesn’t give the freedom from glasses. The patients may need bifocals or trifocals after the surgery.

Many healthcare insurance companies provide coverage plans to meet the cataract surgery cost. These plans help you pay the reimbursements to the eye surgeons affordably. Medicare is one such reputed supplier of health insurance plans. The costs you pay may depend on the annual deductible and co-payments. The Medicare patients are liable to pay 20% of the total medical cost. Some of those costs are:

• EKG which determines the cardiac health before the cataract surgery
• Eye test which gives the measurements of the eye refractors and respective problems in the lens
• Costs of the anesthesia specialist and nurse
• Prescription of eyeglasses which may be needed to improve the eye vision post-surgery
• Medical care after the surgery which includes 90-day rest period post-surgery

For instance, the patient may need to go for the YAG laser capsulotomy which generally costs $300. This laser procedure is necessary to rectify the posterior capsule opacification. A residual membrane is left on the eye during the surgery which is removed by the laser procedure.

It is advised to contact a trustable insurance provider to discuss the cost of the cataract surgery. Have clear-cut conversations with them to know about the complete cost, coverage included and the payments you need to make.

Some of the common questions you must ask your insurance provider

• How much do you need to pay for the co-payments? This means you must know how much amount you have to pay out of the total medical costs. For example, in some cases, you need to pay 20% of the total cost.
• How much money do you need to pay for the deductibles? You can choose to have high yearly deductibles for the insurance coverage. This keeps your monthly payment low. For instance, you may need to pay $1000 as the deductibles before going for the cataract surgery.
• Does the insurance company approve the eye surgeon if the eye surgeon is not preferred by you? In such cases, approval must be included in the coverage plan.
• Does the coverage plan include the cost of eyeglasses? You may need them after the cataract surgery. Good insurance companies provide the essential coverage for the reimbursement of one pair of eyeglasses post cataract surgery.
• Does the insurance supplier approve the surgical center? At times the surgical center may not be approved even though the surgeon could be an approved one. It is necessary to note that the surgical centers that would be used by the surgeon must be approved. If not you can land up in terrible situations and have to pay the entire fees attracted by the surgical centers. You could end up paying thousand dollars.
• Does your insurance provider make special arrangement for the preferred eye surgeon? The preferred surgeon won’t charge you higher than the normal cost of the cataract surgery process. Get a fair estimate of the complete cost of the cataract surgery and then proceed ahead for the treatment.