A Look Back at the Online Eye Contact Meeting
On July 2, Benjamin Flettner, an ocularist specializing in glass eye prostheses, was a guest at an Online Oogcontact meeting for the first time. He answered many questions about coverage by health insurers.
Meeting with ocularist Benjamin Flettner
The amount reimbursed varies greatly depending on the health insurer and the type of insurance. Benjamin is currently in discussions with the health insurers about this. The OOG in OOG Association is also consulting with healthcare providers to explore how we can jointly approach the health insurers to emphasize the importance of offering glass ocular prostheses alongside plastic ones.
The cost at Benjamin is now €1,100 for an initial appointment and a glass prosthesis. For a subsequent prosthesis (after 2 years), the cost is €810.
Benjamin holds office hours for two days each month at the Eye Hospital in Rotterdam. For the other locations in the Netherlands, he operates on a waiting list. When there are five people on the waiting list, he schedules an appointment with them so that it is cost-effective for him to travel to that location. Benjamin said he wants satisfied customers. So if, after a day or a week, a customer finds that the prosthesis doesn’t fit well or isn’t comfortable, they can come back at no cost.
For the rest of the session, Benjamin answered many personal questions from the participants. It’s possible that a glass prosthetic eye could help one participant avoid having to undergo another surgery. For her, this session was therefore especially valuable.
