Laser Vision Correction: Don't Be Afraid to Shop Around
By Dr Ilan Sebban
For many people the cost of laser surgery may appear at first
glance to be prohibitive. Some clinics charge for every step of the
procedure, from an initial consultation fee to each pre- and
post-operative visit, as well as any necessary re-treatments,
resulting in fees of as much as $4000 per eye.
Australia allows for competition, so eye surgeons are free to charge any price that a patient is prepared to pay. Is there any reason, however, to justify such a high cost?
Today the three most sought-after elective laser eye surgical procedures are surface laser (PRK, LASEK, ASL or ASLA), LASIK (Microkeratome or Intralase), and Presbyopic laser or Blended Vision (Presbylaser or Presbymax). While all three involve the laser, LASIK uses the flap procedure, the laser cutting a flap in the cornea to reshape it. PRK, on the other hand, utilizes the laser to reshape the surface of the cornea without a cut, while Presbyopic laser involves LASIK or PRK.
The cost of laser eye surgery should depend on the type of surgical procedure you are planning, the level of service, quality and safety of the clinic involved, the skills and experience of the surgeon, and the equipment he or she will be using. However, it should not depend on the clinic's overheads.
Some practices have significant overheads particularly due to to patient acquisition costs, which include advertising, seminars and fees paid to other eye care practitioners for referrals and co-management. Usually all these costs are passed on to the patient. Indeed, a US study has found that in 2009, only 47.2% of eye surgeons quoted a single all-inclusive price for laser surgery, while in 2010, only 54.1% quoted a single price.
There are practices that choose to make this surgery affordable, charging as little as $1000 or so per eye. Relying on word of mouth as the best way to acquire patients, their volume of business increases, enabling them to reduce costs and pass significant savings on to their patients, who also benefit from the surgeons' greater experience and expertise.
The Shinagawa Eye Laser clinics, for example, which began in Tokyo and have now expanded throughout Japan and Singapore, began surgery at an affordable price and achieved astronomical patient numbers, which has allowed them to expand while at the same time keeping prices low.
The most important consideration when you compare the costs of laser eye surgery isn't financial at all. It's that you have confidence in the eye surgeon. If you don't like what you hear, get a second opinion.
Since June 2004, The Sebban Eye Centre ( www.eye.net.au ) has consistently aimed to be the most competitively priced laser vision correction centre in Australia, quoting a single price for laser vision correction. This means that pre- and post-operative visits, technologies such as customized wavefront procedures, and enhancements are not priced separately and charged as "extras," in addition to a basic fee for a laser vision correction procedure, but are incorporated in a single, all-inclusive cost.
Remember: Don't be afraid to shop around for the best surgeon at the lowest price.
Australia allows for competition, so eye surgeons are free to charge any price that a patient is prepared to pay. Is there any reason, however, to justify such a high cost?
Today the three most sought-after elective laser eye surgical procedures are surface laser (PRK, LASEK, ASL or ASLA), LASIK (Microkeratome or Intralase), and Presbyopic laser or Blended Vision (Presbylaser or Presbymax). While all three involve the laser, LASIK uses the flap procedure, the laser cutting a flap in the cornea to reshape it. PRK, on the other hand, utilizes the laser to reshape the surface of the cornea without a cut, while Presbyopic laser involves LASIK or PRK.
The cost of laser eye surgery should depend on the type of surgical procedure you are planning, the level of service, quality and safety of the clinic involved, the skills and experience of the surgeon, and the equipment he or she will be using. However, it should not depend on the clinic's overheads.
Some practices have significant overheads particularly due to to patient acquisition costs, which include advertising, seminars and fees paid to other eye care practitioners for referrals and co-management. Usually all these costs are passed on to the patient. Indeed, a US study has found that in 2009, only 47.2% of eye surgeons quoted a single all-inclusive price for laser surgery, while in 2010, only 54.1% quoted a single price.
There are practices that choose to make this surgery affordable, charging as little as $1000 or so per eye. Relying on word of mouth as the best way to acquire patients, their volume of business increases, enabling them to reduce costs and pass significant savings on to their patients, who also benefit from the surgeons' greater experience and expertise.
The Shinagawa Eye Laser clinics, for example, which began in Tokyo and have now expanded throughout Japan and Singapore, began surgery at an affordable price and achieved astronomical patient numbers, which has allowed them to expand while at the same time keeping prices low.
The most important consideration when you compare the costs of laser eye surgery isn't financial at all. It's that you have confidence in the eye surgeon. If you don't like what you hear, get a second opinion.
Since June 2004, The Sebban Eye Centre ( www.eye.net.au ) has consistently aimed to be the most competitively priced laser vision correction centre in Australia, quoting a single price for laser vision correction. This means that pre- and post-operative visits, technologies such as customized wavefront procedures, and enhancements are not priced separately and charged as "extras," in addition to a basic fee for a laser vision correction procedure, but are incorporated in a single, all-inclusive cost.
Remember: Don't be afraid to shop around for the best surgeon at the lowest price.
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