Gyno Surgery Coverage???

[Makodhardie]

Hey guys! I've been on here for a while but this is my first post in this section. I'm currently in OCS and looking at taking some leave and hometown recruiter time when I graduate in September. I developed some gyno during early and mid-stages of puberty and it flared up a little on me a couple years ago and caught my attention. I'm looking at trying to get the surgery done but I wanted to see if anyone has any imput on how to go about getting it done under insurance coverage. My family's home is in the Nashville area so I will be looking for a surgeon in that area.

Thanks for the help,
-Dave

[egodog48]

I think you will be SOL. The best thing I have heard is that you can tell them that they are painful, but depending on your gyno symptoms, Im not sure that would even help. If there are lumps, then Im sure you could get away with it. If you need some lipo then I think that would be coming out of your pocket.

[Makodhardie]

I've got very easily palpable lumps behind each nipple and then smaller ones in the surrounding areas on both sides. The only pain I've really noticed is a serious increase in sensitivity to sweat. That's recently always been with the Army PT shirts so it may just be material. I did some other searches online and found a handful of people saying they had done it or knew people who had. I also heard something about a 1-time complimentary plastic surgery coverage...?

[mw1111]

MOST insurances will not cover any surgeries for gyno ...they are all considered elective cosmetics surgergies. Maybe search at one of the larger forums- there is a DR. there that does mostly gyno surgeries.

edit: his name is DrBermant and his site is plasticsurgery4u.com

[solomon1979]

Hey guys! I've been on here for a while but this is my first post in this section. I'm currently in OCS and looking at taking some leave and hometown recruiter time when I graduate in September. I developed some gyno during early and mid-stages of puberty and it flared up a little on me a couple years ago and caught my attention. I'm looking at trying to get the surgery done but I wanted to see if anyone has any imput on how to go about getting it done under insurance coverage. My family's home is in the Nashville area so I will be looking for a surgeon in that area.

Thanks for the help,
-Dave

The military will not pay for you to get that done on the outside. If you are active duty, then you are eligible to have one cosmetic surgery done. I have seen a gyno removal job done at Ft. Bragg and IMHO, it was not done exceptionally well. There was some severe scarring where the half-moon incisions were made below the areola. If you are active duty and do decide to get this done while you are in the military, then expect to be waiting a considerable amount of time for he surgery to take place(4-6 months). I somewhat have this feeling that you were expecting to be able to get this done on your leave. Its possible, but not without it coming directly out of pocket.

[mw1111]

The military will not pay for you to get that done on the outside. If you are active duty, then you are eligible to have one cosmetic surgery done. I have seen a gyno removal job done at Ft. Bragg and IMHO, it was not done exceptionally well. There was some severe scarring where the half-moon incisions were made below the areola. If you are active duty and do decide to get this done while you are in the military, then expect to be waiting a considerable amount of time for he surgery to take place(4-6 months). I somewhat have this feeling that you were expecting to be able to get this done on your leave. Its possible, but not without it coming directly out of pocket.
WOW i did'nt realize the Military would do that. BUT it does not surprise me than it was a poor quality job. ..I grew up going to Base hospitals and clinics and the service always sucked( well actually only 95% of the time) -but it was always free , so i guess i cant complain too much.:D

[Makodhardie]

This is what I figured the answer would come out to be. I am active duty and there may be some serious time between OCS and BOLC-II courses which is why I was looking at having the surgery done during my leave/hometown recruiting time. Private surgeons will not deal with the Tricare plan and the Army doesn't approve non-contracted doctors for anything. I would much rather have the surgery done for free but I don't think I can work a scheduling gamble with getting the Army to do it and I'm not interested in having shitty scars under my nipples, even if I get compensation for them being left by an approved Army surgeon (I've got a classmate here with a couple scars from surgery that were long enough to earn him an extra $300 a month).

Anyway, does anybody have any thoughts about buying some sort of additional non-Tricare insurance for the purpose and time frame of having this done?

[mw1111]

Well first off , Most insurance policies have pre- existing condition clauses and if they dont there is always a waiting period.... but most would not cover it anyways.
Hate to say it but unless you got the cash on hand , you are not going to get it done that quick.........There are companies that do financing for plastic surgery now. Have you checked Dr bermant's site?

[Makodhardie]

Hey guys, thanks for the replies. I haven't had time to get on and check out other sites yet this week... schedule here runs up to the time lights go out at night and we can't be out of our racks when that happens. I will look into it this weekend. My main concern with having it done outside of military covereage is how I need to go about getting it cleared on my records so I can be RTD'ed by the time BOLC-II or Airborne starts. Any experience with this?

[solomon1979]

Hey guys, thanks for the replies. I haven't had time to get on and check out other sites yet this week... schedule here runs up to the time lights go out at night and we can't be out of our racks when that happens. I will look into it this weekend. My main concern with having it done outside of military covereage is how I need to go about getting it cleared on my records so I can be RTD'ed by the time BOLC-II or Airborne starts. Any experience with this?

Just wait. You'll have leave plenty of other times and be able to schedule a surgery on leave in the future. You run the risk of being recycled if you try and get this done now, b/c there's no way to accurately estimate the amount of recuperation that you'll actually need. It wouldn't be as much of a problem if you were already done with OCS, Airborne School, etc.

[Makodhardie]

Maybe I didn't make it clear but I wasn't about to attempt to have this surgery done during the middle of school. I was going to schedule it during time between OCS and BOLC-II or Airborne... there is often a couple months between dates depending on what class sizes are looking like. I was more concerned with the trouble of getting private (out of your pocket) surgery and having medical records updated... or would this be something I'd have to do and not report?

[solomon1979]

Maybe I didn't make it clear but I wasn't about to attempt to have this surgery done during the middle of school. I was going to schedule it during time between OCS and BOLC-II or Airborne... there is often a couple months between dates depending on what class sizes are looking like. I was more concerned with the trouble of getting private (out of your pocket) surgery and having medical records updated... or would this be something I'd have to do and not report?

When you are on hold-over status, waiting for schools, they will actually push you back further on the list or take you off of it(Airborne School) altogether when you are on profile. They constantly look for ways to bump people from classes before they begin to make room for other people who are completely healthy. If this is something you are willing to risk, then so be it. You could also easily get this done on the outside and have it transferred into you military medical records. The only way this would become a problem is if your health suffered as a result the surgery or if recuperation made you miss a class date. My point in telling you to wait is that you could probably get your a military P.A. or Surgeon to assist you later on without having to do all of this legwork right now.

[neonhypoxia]

I've said it to others before and I'll say it again: I'll do your gyno surgery. I'm not a surgeon, infact I've only disected two things before. However my rates are cheap and negotiable. I won't file paper work with anyone. I also have a knife. I have two "nurses" and while they have no experience either they are nice to look at. And to knock you out I have all the ether you can huff.

[Makodhardie]

Hey guys, thanks for all the input. I don't get much freedom at all to get online during the week.. at least for another week or so when we switch off of study barracks restriction at the end of the day...

I'm mainly looking into this surgery for future planning. I don't have a bad case but I'm conscious of it so I want to get it done eventually. There is usually a couple months between OCS and BOLC-II that I won't be doing any actual training for the Army. Most people take HRAP time and leave during this period and I'm looking at doing that so I'd have plenty of time for recovery but I don't know about how these things work if I'm not checked into an actual school and getting put on profile for recovery and all of that. There probably won't be as much time between BOLC-II and IOBC, Airborne, Ranger, etc once I get to that point so the next optimal time to have it done would probably be after I get to my unit sometime next year. I just need some input on how to go about doing that. I don't yet know how all that stuff works as far as getting counsel from a military PA, etc.

[solomon1979]

Hey guys, thanks for all the input. I don't get much freedom at all to get online during the week.. at least for another week or so when we switch off of study barracks restriction at the end of the day...

I'm mainly looking into this surgery for future planning. I don't have a bad case but I'm conscious of it so I want to get it done eventually. There is usually a couple months between OCS and BOLC-II that I won't be doing any actual training for the Army. Most people take HRAP time and leave during this period and I'm looking at doing that so I'd have plenty of time for recovery but I don't know about how these things work if I'm not checked into an actual school and getting put on profile for recovery and all of that. There probably won't be as much time between BOLC-II and IOBC, Airborne, Ranger, etc once I get to that point so the next optimal time to have it done would probably be after I get to my unit sometime next year. I just need some input on how to go about doing that. I don't yet know how all that stuff works as far as getting counsel from a military PA, etc.

If you are wanting to get this done on your own and out of pocket, then contact a local(or at least within the area you will be on leave at)plastic surgeon. Shop around between the doctors that are practicing in that area and see which one, if any can accommodate you. If you choose to wait until you actually get into your unit and have already completed Ranger school(this is of dire importance for Army Infantry Officers), then you can just simply go into sick call and discuss this with your battalion PA. He will be able to answer all of your questions and be able to make recommendations as well as give consults for the surgery. His recommendation for surgery is a necessity to get the unit to go along with it.

[Makodhardie]

That's what I was thinking would be the normal route. I know where I am now, anything for sick call that would put me on profile could really screw me during any stage of this battery of TRADOC I'm going through so I wanted to stay away from it until I have a significant break but still be able to get it done at a good time.

[Nex]

That's what I was thinking would be the normal route. I know where I am now, anything for sick call that would put me on profile could really screw me during any stage of this battery of TRADOC I'm going through so I wanted to stay away from it until I have a significant break but still be able to get it done at a good time.

I wouldnt risk it bro, if you run the risk of getting dropped from your course becaus say something went wrong with the surgery for what ever reason (and it can and has happened) than guess what, your plans may be screwed up. Saying this as a friendly gesture, I would really focus on your priorities right now soldier. this is a minimal medical issue that can and shoudl wate untill you have completed all of your courses. you could always try a research chem AI liek letro befor you get surgery while your on leave. It will kill your sex drive but people have had many success. I just wouldnt risk trying to jump thegun on something that can screw up your plans.. The Military doesnt F around with maedical issues. If you get this done they may even require you to get a waivor and medical clearence to even continue which can take months.

[Makodhardie]

Thanks for the info guys. I am definitely waiting until after OCS. I didn't know if I had made that clear. I'm not about to go to sick call here for anything unless its serious enough that I have to. I was looking for input on when and how would be the most strategic times and AOA's of getting this done.

I when I had a flare up a couple years back, I used letro from one of the research chem vendors but I don't know how real that was. I didn't notice any difference and I have used Albuterol from the same company a couple times and it really didn't do anything for me. I responded much better on ephedrine products or even just caffeine-based stimulants alone. I'm hesitant to waste my money and time trying to mess around with that stuff if its not really functioning.

[ManOSteele]

What does something like this cost when going out of pocket? Also what's the recovery time?