With cost-of-living increases, higher deductibles and coinsurances, many patients are having challenges funding their medical procedure. As a plastic surgeon, my cosmetic surgeries are not covered by health insurance, so I wanted to teach you four secrets that can help save your time and treasure. More importantly, these tips can work for other medical or dental care too!
1. Ask for a package
In cosmetic surgery, it is customary to discount additional procedures. For example, if a patient is already undergoing a facelift, adding an eyelid lift can be quite economical. A breast lift can often be added to a tummy tuck. We also provide a discount to our patients who pre-purchase multiple facials, microneedling or laser treatments. Liposuction and an arm lift–we are game!
2. Schedule during a slow time
Every industry, be it resorts, restaurants, or medical practices have a slow and busy season. Plastic surgery has its seasons too! If looking to undergo an expensive treatment, asking the office if they have any specials for scheduling during the doldrums may be useful. The medical practice may require you to pay upfront, but the savings may be worth it.
3. Health Saving Accounts (HSA)
HSA or Health Savings accounts are part of an IRS approved program which allows consumers to save and spend money pretax for IRS approved medical expenses. The IRS maintains a list (Publication 502) on what is covered – and you may be surprised! For example, the IRS states HSAs can be used for cosmetic surgery if “it is necessary to improve a deformity arising from… an accident or trauma, or a disfiguring disease.”
Medical breast reduction denied by insurance as cosmetic? Scar revision denied as cosmetic? Maybe an HSA account can work?
Want to use an HSA to pay for health club dues, medicines from other countries, or dancing lessons? Somebody must have tried because the IRS specifically says no.
To be eligible for an HSA, you must have a high deductible health insurance plan. Then you open an account through an administrator such as https://www.healthequity.com People with family high deductible health plans can contribute as much as $8,300 in 2024. This 8,300 does not count toward your income in terms of state and federal taxes, potentially resulting in thousands of dollars of savings.
If you don’t use all the money in a calendar year, you can use it the following year.
While all the details of HSAs are beyond the scope of this article, this is an important tax feature to know about.
4. Health Care Financing
Many medical practices participate with a third-party financing company such as CareCredit. These financing companies allow patients to pay back the cost of a medical procedure over months or years. The conditions that each medical office offers though their financing company are different.
