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How serious is the surgery to implant a defibrillator?

Defibrillator implantation is a relatively routine surgery. The process for doing so is nearly identical to the placement of a pacemaker which many surgeons perform dozens of times a year. 

While any surgery has risks, defibrillator implant surgery is not particularly risky. Often the most dangerous thing about the procedure is that it is being performed on a patient with a potentially dangerous heart condition that will need to be closely monitored during surgery.

What is an implanted cardioverter defibrillator (ICD)?

How do they implant defibrillators?

How long is the procedure to put in a defibrillator?

How long does it take to recover from defibrillator surgery?

How long can a person live with an implanted defibrillator?

How often do you have to replace a defibrillator?

* Savings estimate based on a study of more than 1 billion claims comparing self-pay (or cash pay) prices of a frequency-weighted market basket of procedures to insurer-negotiated rates for the same. Claims were collected between July 2017 and July 2019. R.Lawrence Van Horn, Arthur Laffer, Robert L.Metcalf. 2019. The Transformative Potential for Price Transparency in Healthcare: Benefits for Consumers and Providers. Health Management Policy and Innovation, Volume 4, Issue 3.

Sidecar Health offers and administers a variety of plans including ACA compliant and excepted benefit plans. Coverage and plan options may vary or may not be available in all states.

Your actual costs may be higher or lower than these cost estimates. Check with your provider and health plan details to confirm the costs that you may be charged for a service or procedure.You are responsible for costs that are not covered and for getting any pre-authorizations or referrals required by your health plan. Neither payments nor benefits are guaranteed. Provider data, including price data, provided in part by Turquoise Health.

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