LASIK Surgery

The cost of LASIK surgery may vary and it depends on many factors, such as levels of pre-operative testing and screening, laser used to reshape cornea and technology used for LASIK surgery - whether you choose standard LASIK or conventional LASIK or Custom LASIK (Waveront LASIK) or bladeless LASIK (IntraLase).

Different providers may charge different fees for LASIK eye surgery. For example, the average fees per procedure as reported by TLC Laser Eye Centers in 2002 was $1,800, $1,957 in fourth quarter of 2004 and $2,000 in 2005; while another LASIK provider, LASIK Plus reported its average price per LASIK procedure was $1,344 in the second quarter of 2005, $1,351 in fourth quarter of 2004 and $1,173 in the first quarter of 2003.

The average cost of LASIK surgery in the U.S. have been rising over the past several years due to additional technology used in LASIK procedure, such as Custom LASIK and IntraLase. In 2002, the cost was between $1,550 to $1,600 per eye and had risen to about $1,700 by October 2003 and continued to rise to $1,800 at the end of 2004 and $1,950 in 2005. For 2006, the cost of the surgery was about $2,000 per eye as reported by LASIK industry sources.

As you can now find many advertisements online and offline offering such eye surgery to reduce or eliminate your dependence on glasses or contacts, be aware of advertisements that offer too low price such as $299 or $500 per eye. There might be any hidden costs behind it - cost of the consultations, pre-operative examination fee, follow-up fee, enhancement fee if something goes wrong, post-operative prescriptions, and more. Although there have been rules and guidelines on LASIK eye surgery advertising in certain states, it is suggested to discuss with your doctor what the LASIK price will include. [See the questions to ask your doctor about cost of LASIK surgery]