Aging Americans with droopy upper eyelids often rely on the plastic surgeon’s scalpel to fix the problem. Increasingly, Medicare is paying. Medicare typically does not cover cosmetic surgery, but when a patient’s sagging eyelids significantly hinder their vision, it does pay to have them lifted. In recent years, though, a rapid rise in the number of so-called functional eyelid lifts, or blepharoplasty, has led some to question whether Medicare is letting procedures that are really cosmetic slip through the cracks — at a cost of millions.
As the Obama administration and Congress battle to restrain Medicare’s growing cost, critics say program administrators should more closely inspect procedures like blepharoplasty to prevent taxpayers being ripped off. More [Thanks BJS]
As the Obama administration and Congress battle to restrain Medicare’s growing cost, critics say program administrators should more closely inspect procedures like blepharoplasty to prevent taxpayers being ripped off. More [Thanks BJS]