After obtaining all of the information that is recommended and getting answers to your questions, you should give yourself adequate time to determine whether or not to get breast implants.

Personal Financial Costs - Breast implant surgery and treatment of complications may not be covered by your health insurance. Typically, insurance companies will not cover breast augmentation or any reoperations and additional doctor visits following augmentation. However, most insurance companies cover the first breast reconstruction operation. Insurance coverage for reoperation procedures or additional doctor visits following reconstruction may not be covered, depending on your insurance policy.

Aside from insurance coverage specific to your surgery, you need to find out about how breast surgery will affect your health insurance, as a whole. For some women, companies may increase premiums, drop coverage, or deny future coverage following breast implant surgery or following complications from the breast implants or surgery. Policies on coverage may also change from year to year.

Before surgery, be sure to get, in writing, answers from your insurance company to the following questions, at a minimum:

• Does my policy cover the costs of the implant surgery, the implant, the anesthesia, and other related hospital costs? To what extent?

• Does it cover removal and replacement of the implants if this becomes necessary? To what extent?

• Does it cover the cost of detecting or treating a complication as a result of either the implant or the reconstruction? To what extent?

• Will there be an increase in my insurance premium? To what extent?

• Will future coverage be affected? To what extent?