the Price of Eye Surgery

Lazy eye surgery correction, also called amblyopia, surgery done in both eyes, for a pediatric patient. Case was diagnosed moderately early, although corrective measures failed. Blindness had not occurred in the patient.

The lazy eye surgery was performed at a pediatric hospital by a pediatric ophthalmologist also trained in eye surgery.

Cost was about $300 out of pocket to the hospital, for a total bill of $600. Part of that $600 went for an anesthesiologist. The remaining amount went to the doctor / surgeon. The $500 cost to the doctor included three post-operative visits.

About half of the cost was covered by insurance.

The surgery took less than two hours. There was no need for an overnight stay.

Seek intervention treatments like patches or eye drops to haze the good eye or prism glasses before you resort to surgery. It may require more visits, but does cost less than surgery.

If surgery is recommended, get a second opinion from a doctor outside of their practice.

When eye surgery is recommended, get quotes from surgical day centers as well as full hospitals. Day surgery centers are often cheaper than the hospital's operating room.

If you have health insurance, tell the hospital to verify that the anesthesiologist is on your health plan. Otherwise, you may get billed separately at an out of network rate for their services.