Does insurance cover the costs of refractive or laser
surgery?
Because refractive/laser surgery is usually an
elective surgery, it is often considered cosmetic and not medically
necessary. Therefore insurance usually does not cover the
procedure. However, under certain conditions, medical insurance
plans will cover refractive surgery. These include:
Refractive errors that are a result of an injury
Refractive errors that are a result of surgery
- Severe refractive errors -- However, there is no standard
level of impairment at which insurance will cover correction.
Coverage under these circumstances is generally very inconsistent,
and individuals should check with their provider.
A patient is not only unable to wear glasses due
to a physical limitation (such as an allergy or deformity) but
cannot wear contacts due to physical limitation (lens
intolerance).