Surgery Quote - Unreasonably High?

[dallasguy12]

I just visited a surgeon in Woodbridge, VA who after making his assessment quoted me $8,431.00. He recognized my case as being relatively minor. I have slightly puffy nipples and a little chest fat. I weigh 170 lbs.

The cost breakdown that was given to me looks like this:

Surgeon's Fee: $4,250.00
Anesthesia Fee: $1,750.00
Facility Fee: $1,736.00
Garment Fee: $100.00
Other: $600.00

TOTAL: $8,431.00

The "Other" fee would be to use Vaser Lipo which he said that while not necessary, it would achieve the best results. Granted, I could forego that and save $600 but honestly, that's still $7,800 for a gynecomastia procedure. Is it just me or does this seem inordinately high?

Would anyone who's had this procedure done care to disclose how much they paid in total? I'm not just talking about the surgeon's fee, I'm talking about from start-to-finish, what was your total cost for the entire shebang? I was prepared to spend 3-4k....

[CaliforniaKing]

That is crazy expensive! Move to Canada. I am having my surgery in a few weeks and Ontario Health Insurance(OHIP) is covering the gland removal. I only have to pay for the liposuction and I was quoted $1,500 for that. All hospital and anesthetic fees are also covered.

[bigdawg1]

Ya that seems a little high to me considering its only a mild case.  I had my surgery done just outside of Boston for $5500 total.  Gland removal(steroid side effect) and lipo(minor).  Dr had his own facility so there was no hospital fee.   You should more concerned on the skill of the surgeon.  You only pay for a good surgeon once, you pay for a bad one for a lifetime.

[Aimster82]

I live in Woodbridge, VA. What plastic surgeon do you know that has an office here? Is this the office on route 1?
Another member here went to that doctor and did it for around 6k I believe.

My surgery is scheduled for the 5th and total cost was $5,800. I could have done it for cheaper for $3,500 but I wanted to go to the hospital. I'd be freaked out if I were awake during it. If you want to know my doctor just send me a PM, but I haven't had the surgery yet. I am just going by my consultation experience and before/after pictures I saw.

I had consultation with
Dr.Bla-u via e-mail/phone. He quoted me $7800 (this guy was big on here but I think he got banned for advertising too much).

Dr.Bermant. I actually went to visit him. I didn't get a quote. He told me I shouldn't do surgery because of saggy skin and scars. Spent an hour there. He was looking at my chest forever.
Dr.Richards in Maryland/Bethesda. $5500. He convinced me and I signed up for surgery. Came home had regrets. Lost $500 consultation fee. He only does liposuction and doesn't do any cuts to remove the gland. He swore his lipo would get rid of it all. He had great marketing for his practice and a beautiful office. I got fooled by that. His before/after pictures were great... the chest were flat but after reading this forum I realized flat isn't good. You need to have definition, not just a flat chest in pictures because when you move/flex it could look horrible.

[Arbalest]

Wow, I registered just to answer this. I think you are getting fleeced. I paid 6000 total for mine a month ago- 4000 for the surgeon, 1100 for the facility and 900 for the anesthesiologist. The vests (I got 2) were included. This is in an affluent small town in upstate NY. I had both lipo and gland excision.

[dallasguy12]

I live in Woodbridge, VA. What plastic surgeon do you know that has an office here? Is this the office on route 1?
Another member here went to that doctor and did it for around 6k I believe.

My surgery is scheduled for the 5th and total cost was $5,800. I could have done it for cheaper for $3,500 but I wanted to go to the hospital. I'd be freaked out if I were awake during it. If you want to know my doctor just send me a PM, but I haven't had the surgery yet. I am just going by my consultation experience and before/after pictures I saw.

I had consultation with
Dr.Bla-u via e-mail/phone. He quoted me $7800 (this guy was big on here but I think he got banned for advertising too much).

Dr.Bermant. I actually went to visit him. I didn't get a quote. He told me I shouldn't do surgery because of saggy skin and scars. Spent an hour there. He was looking at my chest forever.
Dr.Richards in Maryland/Bethesda. $5500. He convinced me and I signed up for surgery. Came home had regrets. Lost $500 consultation fee. He only does liposuction and doesn't do any cuts to remove the gland. He swore his lipo would get rid of it all. He had great marketing for his practice and a beautiful office. I got fooled by that. His before/after pictures were great... the chest were flat but after reading this forum I realized flat isn't good. You need to have definition, not just a flat chest in pictures because when you move/flex it could look horrible.

Thank you for responding. Yes, I'd love to know the doctor you're seeing now. You're exactly right, I saw Dr. Saeed Marefat of Metropolitan Plastic Surgery on Route 1.

I don't mean to disparage him but as other users have suggested, it sounds like a fleecing. How can he charge over 8k for something other doctors are doing for 4-5k? Is he really THAT much better?

I definitely would like more recommendations for doctors in VA. Thanks all.

[jojo82]

Short answer: Yes.

Long answer: Surgeon fees vary greatly based on many things like experience and location. However, more often than not, the fee is just based on what the surgeon feels the market can tolerate. Since plastic surgery consumers are rarely rational actors because they lack a lot of information, the higher fee may not reflect higher quality. But the surgeon fee you quoted is far above the national average according to the american board of plastic surgery (average is around 3300 for gynecomastia surgery).

I would schedule many more consultations to get a feel of what is "normal" in your area. Please check out your local medical college also. Schedule a consult with the plastic surgery clinic. Do more research online and do not limit yourself to the doctors you find on this site or in google searches- those places are dominated by marketing. You're finding out the hard way what a lot of us are aware of- being a plastic surgery consumer is difficult business due to the asymmetrical flow of information & extremely heavy marketing. Keep looking, though- reasonable prices do exist. It's just like shopping for a car.

[hatemymoobs]

It's just like shopping for a car.

I hate shopping for a car! lol

[MrRossZ28]

I paid $3,000 for excision and lipo

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

I just visited a surgeon in Woodbridge, VA who after making his assessment quoted me $8,431.00.

I had consultation with
Dr.Bla-u via e-mail/phone. He quoted me $7800 (this guy was big on here but I think he got banned for advertising too much).

Wow! -- my fees in the middle of the Big Apple are less than most of what you quoted.  What should I do?? 

Dr Jacobs

[morpheus11]

that does seem a bit high.  I'm paying a total of 5,500 for mine, and I thought it was a bit high. 

good look on your search.