alberta health reembursment

Not being paid what they THINK they are worth and being paid what the AHS schedule allows are two different situations.  This is not news.  It's the same for insurance companies who use dental schedules from 3-4 years ago to reimburse clients and we are left with the extra uncovered costs.  The fact of the matter is that an Albertan should be able to go to any plastic surgeon and get the pannus removal or breast reduction done at no cost.  Mine were both done free of charge by Dr. Toy.  If there are surgeons who are refusing to do this, it likely should be reported to Alberta Health.

As for the extras, that is a different story as well.  I believe that AHS should be covering more  procedures for patients who have had massive weight loss.  For me, I had to pay $20K over and above what was covered by AHS for my reconstructive surgery.  Granted, I realize that I am a special case as I was in the 500 club when I started and I didn't expect to get it for free.  I love the results thus far and will gladly pay for a expert surgeon like Dr. Toy.  However, it would have been better if AHS stepped up and saw that reconstructive surgery is not just about breasts and panni only.  It's usually also about inner thighs usually.  I have a friend who has had to battle cellulitis three times (with hospital stays) and the risk of losing her leg due to the excess skin she cannot afford to have removed.  AHS cannot realistically justify that it's not medically necessary to remove the skin, but yet it's still not covered.  What a crock!

Cheers!

  Xcalibur