How much does varicose vein treatment cost?

The Vein Clinic is a privately owned, specialist medical clinic with a unique focus on treating veins. We invest in the most effective and up to date technologies and also invest heavily in education. The fees we charge reflect the level of expertise and service we offer. We do not aim to be the cheapest nor the most expensive provider of these services.

Factors Affecting The Cost of Varicose Vein Treatment

Vein treatment is very individualised and depends on the extent of the vein problem, the method of treatment, the number of treatments required, the time taken for each treatment, the expense of the consumables used and your individual anatomy and complexity of treatment.

If you have recurrent varicose veins after previous surgery or sclerotherapy then your treatment plan will likely be more complex and require more treatment sessions and expense than someone who has not had prior treatment.

Treatment options and costing can only be determined after we have performed a detailed, in-house scan and consultation and have determined what your desired outcome and expectations are.

Book An Appointment

If comparing costs between clinics you need to compare “apples with apples” and consider the total “out of pocket” expense for ALL of the costs DIRECT & INDIRECT below.

DIRECT COSTS

• Initial ultrasound scans
• Initial specialist consultation and treatment plan
• Treatment – primary treatment (i.e Endovenous Laser Ablation)
• Secondary treatments – (i.e. Ambulatory Phlebectomy, Ultrasound Guided Foam Sclerotherapy)
• “Touch up” treatments – (i.e. Ultrasound Guided Foam Sclerotherapy)
• Ultrasound scans – follow ups to exclude DVT and confirm successful treatment.

Because the vein clinic does all the above “in-house” in a streamlined fashion, we usually work out to be much more time and cost effective than other clinics that may outsource some of the above steps.

Dr Matar also personally checks all scans to ensure unrivalled diagnostic accuracy and tailor the treatment plan specifically to your vein problem.

Our treatment plans often work out to cost less money “out of pocket” than similar treatment with alternative providers.

INDIRECT COSTS

One of the biggest costs that people forget to factor in is the indirect costs both in terms of discomfort and financial cost. Recovery after surgical stripping is nearly always much more painful and prolonged than after laser or foam sclerotherapy.

Two days of your life in hospital and two weeks at home recovering and unable to work is a huge expense and opportunity cost for a self-employed person. For a mum with young children this is a massive inconvenience and may necessitate additional costs with child care and “calling in favours” from friends and family.

Pain and suffering also comes at a cost, as do the secondary treatments needed in about 50% of patients having stripping to treat surgical recurrence.

Private Health Funds Will Only Cover In Hospital Treatments

Private health funds do not provide any rebate towards treatment costs, as these are performed out of hospital on a “walk-in, walk-out” basis in our custom-built vein clinic. Private health insurance will in many cases contribute towards the cost of compression stockings required after treatment. The amount claimable through your health fund is dependent on your level of insurance cover.

Health funds will usually cover old fashioned surgical stripping performed in a private hospital under general anaesthetic but the cost savings may be minimal (if any) when ALL costs are considered (see below).

Vein Stripping at Private Hospitals (Beware of ALL The Hidden Costs)

Some patients will be disappointed that the outpatient non-surgical vein treatments are not covered by health funds and start exploring surgical stripping because “my health insurance will pay”.

Some surgeons that are “no gap providers” will advise “no out of pocket cost for surgeon’s fees”.

This may give the impression that treatment is “free”; this is usually not the case.

Health fund excess, anaesthetist fees, scan fees, consultation fees and additional “touch up” treatments may all be encountered. We have seen patients with recurrent veins following stripping several years earlier tell us they were $1500-$2000 “out of pocket” following surgical stripping with a “no gap” provider ! Even worse they spent a few days in hospital, had two weeks off work and now have to pay to get the veins retreated.

In many cases, they could have been treated by us in our clinic with no need to go into hospital, no need for general anaesthetic, no cuts, scars, no time off work for little extra expense and with lasting results.

Endovenous Laser Ablation vs Vein Stripping Costs

According to our own research and CHOICE Magazine, the average out of pocket cost for Endovenous Laser Ablation in Australia is between $2,500 and $4,000 per treatment, whilst vein stripping is around $2,000 (plus hospital and anaesthetic costs).

Vein Treatment At Public Hospitals

Public hospitals no longer treat or place patients on the waiting list if varicose veins are considered “uncomplicated”, even if symptomatic.

If you have complications of venous eczema, venous ulcers and thrombophlebitis your GP may be able to get you placed on the waiting list at a public hospital.

You will generally wait 6-12 months for treatment, often done by a surgical trainee. You will have no choice of treatment day or time nor surgeon and will have to take what is offered. You will usually be placed at the end of an arterial list and if the earlier cases run over time, you will be cancelled and need to wait again (often months) for another opening.