Need Some Advice with Making a Decision on How to Manage Upcoming Cost of 20-30K for Jaw Surgery

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  Quantumcat on 12/09/2018 - 12:40

  +1

  If it isn't urgent, have you calculated how much it would cost to get higher health insurance and wait out the waiting periods?

  • 

    manicmoon on 12/09/2018 - 12:45

    I have looked up health insurance, and it's about $200 a month. This will only really cover hospital stay and you won't get much back if anything for the actual surgery cost. I have seen people in Sydney/Australia with health insurance covering their hospital costs etc and they get maybe $1-2k back from medicare/private health insurance for $10000-12000 surgery.

    There is a possibility of getting surgery done publically (so public hospital as a private patient) which will save on hospital costs etc. but this I can only find out once I've discussed with the surgeon.

    The "worst case scenario" would be 30k all up including braces, surgery and hospital/anesthetics I reckon, but I could potentially get $20-25k total cost dependent on private health insurance, and whether I go through public or private.

    The waiting period for major dental is usually 12 months.

    • 

      Colombian on 12/09/2018 - 13:22

      +1

      Not in my case. I just had a Cochlear Implant surgery and just paid about $1200 of $30.000 of the total cost of Hospital and surgery. I think you need to be sure of the coverage before paying for health insurance.

    • 

      derpdeder on 12/09/2018 - 17:36

      Try and find a "gap cover" doctor to do the surgery. BUPA for example have their list here: https://www.bupa.com.au/find-a-provider

      They can cover some\most\all of this gap from the surgery cost depending.

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  HighAndDry on 12/09/2018 - 13:57

  +2

  $350/wk = 18.2k/yr.

  That's on your present income without payrises, so if you stick to it, you'd have your $36.4k in 2 years' time and likely more if you

  But the first thing you really need to do is talk to your doctor and your surgeon, that way you will have a better idea of the actual costs involved, whether the hospital have any payment plans you could take advantage of if you don't have the lump sum ready, and whether they're aware of any way to get more of your procedure covered under health insurance.

  • 

    manicmoon on 12/09/2018 - 14:42

    +1

    For sure, I'm definitely going to get all the details I can. Unfortunately the first ortho/surgeon I went to did not give me any clear numbers for the surgery, they only quoted me on the braces which was about $10k. Didn't like the attitude of the ortho either so I'm trying to look for 2nd opinions. Thank you!

    The actual surgery unfortunately isn't covered by health insurance (or very little). At least this is what I know from others who have had double jaw surgery in Australia. My surgeon did mention that the cost of hospital (over night stay, anesthetics) would be covered, and that could be a couple ground at least.

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  Godric on 12/09/2018 - 13:58

  Visit the guy in the shed he'll do it for a bargain

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  MoonlapseVertigo on 12/09/2018 - 14:08

  +5

  if it's not urgent - go public hospital and use the savings for a holiday. It's a shock how low the coverage is with private health insurance - one of the biggest rip offs in this world. best of luck to you

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    manicmoon on 12/09/2018 - 14:40

    When I was still a teenager, I had no job and went for a free cleanup. The dentist saw how my jaw was and actually put me on a wait list. She said if I did not hear back from anyone in 2 years, that I wouldn't be 'eligible' for free jaw surgery anymore. Ideally I'd like to operate under a public hospital with a private surgeon, so at least hospital fees etc. can be waived. It is quite a bit of money unfortunately. :( I'm still young but I'm already seeing signs of teeth being worn down due to the way I bite, so I reckon it's worth it to get it fixed sooner than later. Thank you :)

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  DrZ on 12/09/2018 - 14:35

  +1

  Hi Manicmoon,

  I just recently finished my invisalign treatment, have been to see a few orthodontist over the years all saying I needed Jaw surgery, but most recent one said I should get pretty good results without it, they do have rubber bands with invisalign which helps with moving the jaw forward. I have been self conscious of my teeth my whole life but have been amazed what can be done with just the invisalign. Anyway would suggest you talk to a few orthodontists which it looks like you are doing and consider if the jaw surgery is really necessary to get the results you want.

  If your interested PM me and can possibly share a before/after photo and/or provide some more info.

  • 

    manicmoon on 12/09/2018 - 14:44

    Hi there,

    Thanks for your experience. I was actually given the option to go through the non-surgical route, using braces + TADs only, which is considerably cheaper. They have told me that it will not fix my jaw/midline discrepancy, as it only moves the teeth. So I would likely still have jaw issues that come with having the wrong bite.

    I'm definitely interested to hear about your experiences! PMing you

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  pantsparty on 12/09/2018 - 14:48

  You can save $350 a week and have more than enough saved in two years. Another option might be to save say half, put the remainder of the cost on a credit card and then immediately do a balance transfer to another credit card which has a long interest free period on the transfer amount. Alternatively, borrow the money from a family member? How urgently does this surgery need to be done?

  • 

    manicmoon on 13/09/2018 - 08:02

    +1

    Thanks, I like that idea of balance transfer to another CC for the surgery. Paying off the braces would be easy enough but it's just the actual surgery costs which will be a lump sum that needs to be paid.

    Unfortunately no family members to borrow money from, I'm the only person in my family with a full time job.

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  cashless on 12/09/2018 - 14:55

  Take it on the chin?

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  d39833 on 12/09/2018 - 16:38

  I know some one who went through a jaw surgery to fix her under bite. She is a graduate too.

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  rompastompa on 12/09/2018 - 16:45

  Shouldn't have gone to the dentist. Saves $30k in your instance! ;)

  Is there some sort of payment plan you can get? A quick Google search shows a few: eg So, sounds like maybe go for a 0% interest for 24 months, see where you're at and either pay the rest off or small loan?

  • Get a few quotes - Check the deal history and maybe hit up one of those companies to see what they can do.
  • Check public vs private (including multiple private insurers, check whether they can expedite the 'waiting' period to gain your business).
  • Lastly, and not recommended, fly to Thailand to get it done.
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  John on 12/09/2018 - 18:23

  Just throwing an idea, have you had a look at option of doing surgery in Asia? Not the shabby spot obviously - the proper ones. For example, South Korea is huge on their face reconstruction surgery, but I wonder if cost is more affordable. I have heard that in some places it is cheaper to get treatment in Asian countries.

  Also, I'm not sure how different is my case. When I was younger I had an underbite too. So I had to wear some teeth guard that would force my bottom teeth to close behind my front teeth. Got a lot of bullying from wearing that, but glad it actually reconstructed my jaw. I'm guessing it worked because I was young and had the chance of growing out from it..

  • 

    manicmoon on 13/09/2018 - 08:04

    Generally orthoondist treatment and jaw surgery treatment goes hand in hand. The orthodontist and jaw surgeon need to communicate to ensure that the teeth movements done by the orthodontist align with the surgeon's plans. Unfortunately due to this, going overseas would not be possible.

    Yeah I was told that in my youth when my jaw was still growing, that it would have been a lot easier to fix my bite issue. However, due to growing up poor, I was never given the opportunity to fix it unfortunately.

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  AFOS on 13/09/2018 - 10:53

  Is it orthognathic surgery?
  If yes, this should be covered by medicare.
  You may need to check with a different orthodontist who had experience with that.
  If you are in Melbourne I can give you contacts.
  Having a private surgeon has its advantages but will set you back by at least $10K comparing to Medicare.

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  AFOS on 13/09/2018 - 11:06

  Sorry, just read your post in full:)

  In case of underbite you will probably need lower jaw surgery. They do them in public hospitals and it should be covered by Medicare (at least it was several years ago).

  You will spend about 1.5 - 2 years in braces, then surgery, then up to the year in braces again, then retainer (initially all the time and subsequently only at night). Most probably some teeth will have to be permanently wired (back sides) for many years to come. Lots of fun (especially surgery) but definitely worth it. Expect for some part of your lower jaw to become numb for quite a while (may be even for decades).

  • 

    manicmoon on 13/09/2018 - 13:15

    Yeah I have been recommended for double jaw surgery, as the discrepancy in my jaws is too much that just lower jaw surgery won't be enough to fix it.

    Yep so I've been told I will be first wearing braces for a 12-14 months, then surgery, then braces/retainer later on. I do know there can be complications like permanent nerve damage, but I reckon it's worth a shot. My friend had double jaw surgery and found it worth it. :)

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  paraneoplastic on 14/09/2018 - 22:46

  My suggestion would be get a second opinion.

  I'm sure you can find a Facsmax that isn't going to charge you a huge surgeons fee if you say your young and paying for it yourself.

  My sister had an osteomyleitis of one of her teeth sockets, the first peridonist she consultant said she'd need 35k surgery to remove it etc etc, she got a second opinion - a much nicer and caring doc, alll she needed was a simple extraction and antibiotics for 4 weeks (ended up costing like $2k).

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  Natken on 02/08/2021 - 04:39

  Hi Manicmoon, I came across your post about underbite jaw surgery as I am currently trying to collect more information as I have the same issues with my jaw. Would you mind to share your experience throughout the process of pre-surgery and post-surgery? Thank you.

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  Gelato on 02/08/2021 - 23:46

  Hi there, i was in your exact situation and had the surgery in about 10 years ago. Thought i would share my thoughts

  below was my cost breakdown roughly
  $7k braces
  $5k surgery
  $1k anaesthetist
  plus hospital cover

  I had medicare and they refunded me about $2k from memory.

  Does your 20-30k budget include hospital cover?
  And some top tier extra policy will give you some $$ each year for orthodontists - so i suggest to have a look at that and evaluate if its worth it

  Also i highly recommend to get hospital cover and plan early regarding when to start your policy etc
  I was meant to stay in a private hospital for 3 days 2 night but my condition was too weak that i had spent an extra day there, which didnt come with any extra cost because of this

  My surgery was meant to happen 12-15 months after taking braces, and it ended up happened at 18th months because my teeth wasn't ready, and the surgeon was booked out before his holiday plans. (who'd have thought so much needed to be considered for a surgery but hey that's reality)

  Also you would also need to plan your work leave after your surgery. Not sure what type of work you are in, but the 1st four weeks for me was definitely weak, tired to be able to do anything. I binged watched dramas to pass time and honestly not really remember what I was watching. And the 5th to 12th weeks I was more energetic but my face was still too swollen for me to socialise with people. Luckily i was on uni break back then. Though everyone's recovery is different, i hope yours will be quicker than mine!

  In terms of finance
  If you have medicare, you cost will go down few thousands and if you can save up $350/week, i think you can comfortably afford it without thinking about balance transfer, also because your braces will probably be paid in instalments. So you dont really need to have 20-30k ready from day 1.

  I'm guessing you are under 30s? Put your saving in the high saving account say westpac that offers 3% pa for people below 30s. Generally ETFs are low risk but since you are definitely taking your surgery, i dont recommend putting your savings to the equity markets, anything can happen there.

  Best of luck to you! It was a life changing experience and i have no regrets of taking it