Catheter Ablation in Australia and availability under public or private system only - and out of pocket costs?

[MrFizz]

I am a fit/active 56 yo male in Canberra Australia with persistent AFIB but succesfully on 200mg amiodarone daily that has me in NSR all the time no matter what I do or eat - I have no side effects being on amiodarone at all - but this is dangerous medication so long term - the meds are not a solution.

Has anyone in Australia had a Catheter Ablation under the Public Hospital system where Medicare covers the cost, or is it a Private patient procedure only - under your Private Health policy and if so, what out of pocket costs did you incur?

My Private health policy (hospital) in Australia didn’t cover heart, so I have upped my private health cover to the best available, but have to wait 12 months for a pre-existing condition.

My EP wants me to have catheter ablation as soon as possible, but said we would wait until my new health cover was available, but I was wondering what other Australian patients experiences/costs were.

Thankyou.

[BobD Volunteer]

Kaz care to comment?

[Hidden]

Kaz747 ....t’is over to you....😉👍

[The_Lord_is_with_Us]

I came down with AFIB about your age. I got ablation in USA right away. Didn't like meds. And apparently there's an issue with increased fibrosis of the heart if you wait too long for ablation.

There's a fibrosis scoring chart in the book THE AFIB CURE by EP John Day. Comes in audio, too. Wealth of info for any AFIB sufferer.

Went 10+ years of glorious peace on my 10-year-old ablation. However, AFIB returned last August. Who knows why ...... stress? ...... tension? Anyway, scheduled an immediate ablation and had it in OCT. Feeling fine.

My recommendation: get the best EP you can. Outcome depends on it. I don't know how tight your funds are, but my insurance paid $125,000 or so for the procedure. But, after all the insurance discounts I saw a charge of $25,000.

If I didn't have insurance, I would negotiate it down and see if I could pay for it myself for under $30,000, so I could get it ASAP. It's that important. I don't think you want AFIB hanging around. I certainly don't.

Good Luck! with your treatment down there. Wishing you the best . . . .

[CDreamer]

Here is a link to one of ~Kaz’s post which you may find of interest:- healthunlocked.com/afassoci...

[Cat04]

You are needed here Kaz747 Hope all good with you apart from your lack of ability to travel! xxxx

[Kaz747]

Hi MrFizz

I’m in Perth and I’ve had 4 ablations as a private patient. I have a fabulous relationship with my EP who bulk bills my visits. I have too hospital cover and haven’t had out of pocket expenses for any of my ablations. I did have to pay a couple of hundred dollars out of pocket for a cardiac CT prior to an ablation as my EP believed that particular provider did the best job.

If you are on Facebook there is an Australian AF support group and a number of people on there have had ablations in the public system. You may find on there someone else from Canberra with relevant info for you.

All the best

Karen

[WEULE]

Hi, i am 58 years of age and last year in August I was diagnosed with AF. I was a very fit person and at the time training for the Melbourne half Ironman. Immediately I was placed on metropolol and eliquis . It was from here my health went downhill. From the time of diagnosis until my ablation in March I had been given two cardio versions that only lasted a week , changes of medications to end up on Flecainide in January . From here on this medication caused even more problems with constant blackouts until one night the medication caused another really bad arythmia in my heart that caused my heart to stop. I was given an emergency ablation in the Townsville hospital on the 23rd March. So far the results have been good . So yes the public electrophysists are as good as the private but there is a long wait list. Please don’t be fooled by the drug you are on . You are lucky it is working well for you but what is the unseen damage. Flecainide and Amioderone are the worst of the AF drugs so as soon as your health cover can support your ablation go with it. Before I was diagnosed with this crazy condition I ate fairly well probably drank too much coffee and alcohol. From August last year I drastically changed anything that may make my AF worse. To this day I believe if I had have taken no drugs and I had have cleaned up my diet and stopped drinking and doing extreme exercise I could have avoided that ablation. I am grateful to the surgeon in Townsville though and grateful to the public hospital that gave me my life back . Good luck

[Golfy2]

Hi, I had a PVC ablation at a private hospital last week with all the costs covered under my health insurance (in NSW). The full cost was around $12,000.