Does Medicare cover HBOT?

Bunnymom
Bunnymom Member Posts: 212 Member
edited April 2022 in Head and Neck Cancer #1

Hi all, I may be facing a tooth extraction (not sure yet). Rad onc said I’ll need 20 dives of HBOT prior to the extraction and 10 after. Tooth had 65 grays.

Does anyone know if Medicare covers hyperbaric oxygen therapy? Also, for those out there who’ve had HBOT prior & after extractions, love to hear about your experience

thank you.

Comments

  • wbcgaruss
    wbcgaruss Member Posts: 2,482 Member
    #2

    Hello, Bunnymom.

    I had HBOT and it was covered by our medicare supplemental insurance through Aetna insurance. I had an extraction done by an oral surgeon that worked with the radiation doctor I had so he knew the radiation fields and strength of the radiation I had received. He was very strong on me getting the HBOT and I understood because I am aware that the jawbone can have a problem healing and it can end up being a very serious jawbone replacement operation, something we all want to avoid.

    So the oral surgeon's office handled everything really. They can tell you if it is covered by medicare in your situation. And if I remember correctly you will have to have your doctor or dentists submit your case for approval to either Medicare or your supplemental insurance. I had no problem there and I think if your doctor is strong on it you will have no trouble either. I mean they were great, they took care of contacting my radiation oncologist and working with him and they got the HBOT approved and probably set me up for my HBOT treatments but I think once approved I may have called and set them up. I think HBOT is getting more widely used for more things in recent years.

    I actually had 30 treatments before extraction. Then I was to have 10 follow up post-extraction. Everything went well until the 10 follow-up treatments. One of the side effects of HBOT is affected vision, I think blurred vision, etc. But in my case, the folks at HBOT said my reaction was the most severe they had ever seen. By the 6th follow-up, I quit. I could not keep my eyes open I had to fight to keep my eyelids up right after the last 2 treatments I had for a short period maybe an hour and then it was ok. But it also affected my vision. I had double vision for 2 weeks and could see OK with one eye closed so I wore a patch over one eye till the double vision went away. I am sure generally most people do not suffer that radical side effect.

    So from what I read, it looks like your rad onc and dentist, or oral surgeon are working together to try their best to help you avoid problems. So talk to them and let them know what insurance you have besides medicare if any and they should be able to direct you and they should know how to get you approved for this.

    Before you start HBOT I recommend going to an ENT or maybe your radiation doctor can check your ears. Any wax build-up should be cleared before HBOT. I had some blockage in one ear when I started and it makes the changes when being pressurized and unpressurized through your ears more difficult. I got that ear cleaned out and just the small obstruction it was made a big difference.

    Hope this helps, more questions please ask. It seems you have a good doc there looking out for you that is great. Hope everything goes smoothly for you.

    Wishing You The Best

    Take Care-God Bless-Russ

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