Lasik in Northern Virginia (Arlington, Reston: sales, 2013, insurance)

[Arlington-Guy]

Hi everybody,

I'm at the age now where it's time to get Lasik done, and I was wondering if there are any good doctors/centers that anyone would recommend.

Cost is a concern because of the new $2500 FSA limit; this would be the first time I'd consider even contributing to an FSA, but with the limit, I'll obiously be paying out of pocket for this. What a great system! I've heard Dr. Boutros at The Eye Center is really good, but with radio advertising, and $8,000 bills I was told some people had (years ago!) I don't know if this is something I can do soon.

I've talked to a couple so far and they want you to come in to even discuss prices. I asked, "Is this an eye-exam? - like, billed as a optometrists exam?" and I was told, "No, it's a free consultation."

Sounds more like a sales presentation.

If anyone has any rough ideas of prices that anyone's seen, I'd really appreciate hearing some.

Thanks!

[Riley09swb]

I had mine done at TLC in Reston. My initial consultation was free and I was able to get a discount on it because of my medical insurance at the time. I was able to finance it for a year with no interest and used my FSA account.

[mdcrim]

I went to Dr. Boutros (the guy on all the radio ads) 5-6 years ago and it was life changing. And my eyesight is still perfect. I had gotten lots of referrals and everyone I talked to recommended Dr. Boutros. I think I paid under $3k for both eyes but can't remember for sure- it may have been more.

[mikecart1]

My only advice is when it comes to eye surgery of any kind, save the Groupon deals at home.

[HokieFan]

Originally Posted by Arlington-Guy

If anyone has any rough ideas of prices that anyone's seen, I'd really appreciate hearing some.

Thanks!

I've heard the range is $2,000 to $4000 per eye, and it's dependent on several factors. Some of them will work with you on making payments instead of paying the whole balance at once.

[coolio69]

Originally Posted by Arlington-Guy

Hi everybody,

I'm at the age now where it's

This reminds me of that Viagra ad.

[jillybean720]

I'm not sure what you mean about age, as I had my iLasik with Dr. Boutros when I was 27 (I'm now 31). I'm SO glad I did it! I had a $2500 FSA that I used toward it, and I know I absolutely did NOT pay any $8k total; I couldn't afford that. I think it was more like maybe $4-5k total, so I had to pay the difference out of pocket. They pretty frequently run deals/specials, so keep an eye on their website and an open ear when you hear them on the radio.

I would absolutely recommend Dr. Boutros. When I had mine done, they only ad I believe three doctors who would perform the iLasik procedure there (The Eye Center). With TLC (which I also considered since, of course, Tiger Woods went there!), they have tons of centers and doctors, so I wasn't as comfortable with the process, but that's just me; I tend to research things to death and felt better going with Dr. Boutros specifically. I also felt better about the iLasik procedure that was completely blade-free; I'm sure by now many others are offering it this way as well, but a few years ago when I had mine, many centers were still cutting corneas via blade instead of laser, which freaked me out.

I've been seeing better than 20/20 since my procedure and keep going back each year for annual exams to keep my "warranty" going (if you go back for your annual exams every year, then they will re-do the procedure for free if your eyesight declines beyond a certain extent, but you have to pay out of pocket for the annual exams, not use insurance). Before I had it done, I was up to -6.00 and -6.50 contact lenses, so my vision was pretty poor; I'd been in glasses since third grade.

[Arlington-Guy]

Originally Posted by jillybean720

I'm not sure what you mean about age

I was told by my eye doctor last time I was there, a couple years ago, that my eyesight was changing too much, and too rapidly to recommend lasik at that point in time; as I was in my late 20's, he told me:

"Generally, most people get the most bang for the buck with lasik in around their early-mid 30's, because most of the degredation you're going to see with your sight has leveled off by then."

Also, could anyone tell me if this iLasik is marketing gimmick or what? I've already heard of tons of lasik places just calling their procedure something else, and charging more.

The Eye Center told me after I set an appointment, they expect up-front cash payment at the time the procedure is done.

Assuming Aetna allows me to have a debit card with my FSA, and allows it to be used for the procedure, instead of traditional reimbusement, then okay, that's $2500 off the top. I have the best health plan you can get with my employer, but still don't imagine it'd offer anything.

So wow, even if this is "pay and reimburse only", and the eye-center won't wait, it looks like you've just got to be flush with cash-in-hand to even get the damn procedure done!

[jillybean720]

Originally Posted by Arlington-Guy

I was told by my eye doctor last time I was there, a couple years ago, that my eyesight was changing too much, and too rapidly to recommend lasik at that point in time;

Okay, well, that's not so much an age thing as an individual thing. By my mid-20s, my prescription had stabilized. I wouldn't have had it done if my vision was still changing. Good call though, to wait until your vision was consistent for a couple years.

Originally Posted by Arlington-Guy

Also, could anyone tell me if this iLasik is marketing gimmick or what? I've already heard of tons of lasik places just calling their procedure something else, and charging more.

iLasik is the name they gave their procedure using all lasers, no blades. Like I mentioned before, some places still use an actual blade to cut the cornea (the first step in the procedure). I'd imagine that nowadays, lots of places are caught up to the blade-free technology.

Originally Posted by Arlington-Guy

Assuming Aetna allows me to have a debit card with my FSA, and allows it to be used for the procedure, instead of traditional reimbusement, then okay, that's $2500 off the top. I have the best health plan you can get with my employer, but still don't imagine it'd offer anything.

Most health plans won't cover anything for this type of procedure because it's considered cosmetic or medically unnecessary; they offer coverage of glasses/contacts, etc., for vision correction as opposed to this more expensive option.

When I had mine done, I used the FSA debit card for the $2500 chunk and paid the rest on my regular debit card. I did not have to wait for any reimbursement. Just ask ahead of time if the place you choose accepts FSA debit cards; most do.

[Arlington-Guy]

Okay I've done some things to get this going:

1. Opted for the full FSA amount allowed for clndr yr 14.
2. I looked into insurance discounts, if any.

Okay, it looks like my vision plan is "EyeMed" (they don't use Aetna for vision)

I was sent to this site: U.S. Laser Network

Has anyone ever heard of these people? I entered a crystal city zip and, coicncidentslly enough, it seems all of the locations are in cities where The Eye Center has offces, lol. No street given, no doctor' names.

It seems to be more like, "Find a US Laser Network doctor near you!"

It would also seem eyemed has its own dollar incentive, then the practitioners do too

I take that "better do it by 12/31/2013 !!! It'll be gone!"

This is a service and a marketing ploy, and they know to give me the same offer I saw when I found them or I'll walk.

Could anyone shed any light on what it is I'm finding here?

Thanks guys!