47, African American, 6', 240lbs, DDD cup, are there any other options for me if insurance won't cover it?

This is very common, in fact, in many areas, it is hard to find plastic surgeons who take insurance even for approved breast reductions. Most plastic surgeons offer mastopexy or reduction as an out-of-pocket expense. So shop around a bit for someone offering reasonable price and perhaps offering financing options. Even patients with mostly ptosis- rather than macromastia will have significant improvement in symptoms with lifting and small reduction. Insurance companies usually make it very difficult to get coverage.

If your insurance will mot cover the procedure there are three possible options for you. First is paying for the procedure out of pocket as a cosmetic operation. That may not be a possibility, but is always an option. The second is to find out how your insurance determines eligibility. A lot of the time weight is considered, and the more someone weighs the more they require to be removed. You could ask them what you would need to weigh in order to qualify based on the estimate that was made by your surgeon and work toward that as a weight loss goal. The third option, which may not be a reasonable option, is to consider a different insurance provider, and select one with a more generous benefit regarding breast reduction surgery.

Hello and thank you for your question.
You can try appealing the insurance company decision. If you are still denied, you can have the breast reduction as a self pay patient. Reach out to your surgeon with your concerns. Best wishes!

Unfortunately this is a pretty common occurance, fighting with insurance companies. You can appeal with the insurance company and annoy them mercilessly. You’d be surprised how the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Otherwise you can pay out of pocket and have it done in a plastic surgeons office to keep costs down. In our office surgicenter it would be no more than $15,000

If your insurance will cover the reduction then you will have to pay for it yourself. The technique I recommend is The Bellesoma Method. This will reduce and reshape your breast tissue creating upper pole fullness without implants, elevate them higher on the chest wall and more medial to increase your cleavage. The weight of the breast is transferred to the underlying pectoralis major muscle resulting in pain relief without excessive reduction. Vertical scars are avoided, nipple sensation (in 95%) and the ability to breast feed are maintained. The cost is $14,000.

Best Wishes,

Gary Horndeski, M.D.

You primary option if insurance will not cover the procedure is to have it done as a cosmetic procedure which would be an out of pocket cost. There are several companies that offer financing to make this a feasible option for patient ( Carecredit, Alpheon, PatientFi, Cherry)

You can pay for the procedure and companies like Care Credit or Cherry can help. You can find a plastic surgery training program at a University Hospital and see if it can be done with a reduced fee. You also could get the excess fat in your breasts removed with liposuction which might decrease you in size and do a very small amount of lifting. The main problem of getting coverage from insurance companies might be your weight since insurance companies increase the amount of breast tissue that must be removed when you are over your ideal weight.

If your insurance is denying your breast reduction but you still would like to have the procedure you can consider paying for it out of pocket. There are financing companies who specialize in credit for medical procedures. Some examples include CareCredit, PatientFi, and Alphaeon Credit. See your board certified plastic surgeon to find out more.

Hello, thank you for your question. It's difficult to say anything definitive without a photo. However, based on the breast size you mentioned, breast reduction surgery may be suitable for you. After this surgery, you can alleviate neck and back pain, have improved mobility, and find it easier to choose clothing. Breast reduction surgery is a procedure that enhances both aesthetics and function in this regard.

Introduction is a very common operative procedure for plastic surgeons.

And days gone by breast production was a cover procedure in many insurance plans. Now this is a rarity. Your solution is to save a little money or perhaps finance through one of the many available financing companies.

This is a generally worthwhile operation that is a very high ultimate satisfaction rate I'll be at occasionally with some healing and scarring problems.