Does Insurance Cover Varicose Vein Treatment?

Are varicose veins covered by insurance?

The answer is YES, varicose vein treatment is covered by most commercial insurance carriers such as Blue Cross Blue Shield, Champus, Aetna, Cigna, Humana, Health Net, Tricare, UMR, and UnitedHealthCare to name a few. Medicare and AHCCCS will also cover treatment.

Many people only try home treatment for varicose veins because they mistakenly believe that veins are only a cosmetic issue. In reality, the patients seen in our office typically have complaints of leg pain and/or ankle swelling in their legs, restless legs or numbing, tired legs and often even leg ulcers. These are real medical problems that significantly impair normal daily living.

If you have any of these symptoms, you should seriously consider seeking guidance and a full vein exam with ultrasound from an experienced vein specialist, as relief may be right around the corner.

Varicose Veins Insurance Story

Recently, a 62-year-old female patient met with our vein specialist Jilanne Rose, DNP-C complaining of left and right leg pain that has progressively become worse over the past several years. We'll call her Rita (not her real name).

Rita noticed a dramatic increase in symptoms in the last 18 months including leg pain, heaviness in both legs, leg fatigue, ankle swelling, leg cramping, restlessness in both legs, and skin discoloration. She was becoming increasingly concerned due to slow healing of wounds and occasional weeping skin in her right leg.

Rita's symptoms were worse after she stood or sat for long periods of time, at night, and at the end of the day. Her pain level had elevated to “severe” over the past month and she was unable to go about her daily personal or work activities.

Rita tried home remedies, such as wrapping her legs with ACE bandages, compression stockings and taking “water pills” which failed to relieve any of her symptoms.

At no out-of-pocket cost to Rita, Dr. Jilanne Rose provided a comprehensive physical examination, reviewed her past medical history,  and completed a duplex ultrasound. Dr. Rose discovered that Rita had several real medical problems with straightforward treatment options. After going over her options, Rita decided to proceed with in-office minimally invasive therapy, including endovenous radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for three veins and endovenous laser treatment (EVLT) for another.

Our business office coordinator Michella Reynolds reached out to Ritas' insurance company, UnitedHealthcare, and obtained pre-certification within 24 hours. Five days after her initial visit with Dr. Rose, Rita had the RFA and EVLT procedures completed on several veins over a three-day period, and is thrilled with the results!

Rita said, “When I stood up after the almost painless RFA procedure was done, I noticed the pressure and pain I have lived with for years was MUCH better. After coming back to have my other leg treated, I'm sleeping through the night for the first time in years.”

Varicose Vein Treatment Costs

Our Patient Choice Advocacy Program at Advanced Vein Institute of Arizona is designed to cover your medical treatments using your health insurance benefits while limiting your out-of-pocket expense. We practice medicine based on our belief in maintaining the highest level of patient care, not based on insurance company guidelines. We are a contracted provider with many health insurance plans to minimize your out-of-pocket expense.

Don’t avoid seeking varicose vein treatment because you feel it will be cost prohibitive. In fact, Advanced Vein Institute of Arizona currently offers a free vein screening because we are so confident in our ability to provide superior care in treating your varicose veins.