Gluteal Lipectomy (Buttock Lift) Cost in Newcastle and the Hunter Valley
My surgical fee for gluteal lipectomy (buttock lift) after significant weight loss starts at $9,990 for the least complex cases. The anaesthetist and Maitland Private Hospital bill separately, so the total is higher than the surgical fee alone. As a day stay operation of around 2.5 hours, the complete cost usually comes to around $19,000 without private health cover, or around $11,000 out of pocket where a Medicare item number applies and your hospital cover contributes. Your individual written quote follows consultation, once I have examined you and know the extent of skin to be removed.
I am Dr Bernard Beldholm, FRACS Specialist Surgeon. I operate at Maitland Private Hospital in the Hunter Valley and see patients from Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Maitland, Port Stephens, the Central Coast and regional NSW.
This page covers gluteal lipectomy performed as a standalone operation. If the buttock skin is being removed as part of a belt lipectomy (body lift), the cost sits on the belt lipectomy cost page instead.
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What my surgical fee includes
My surgical fee includes:
Your second consultation at no cost
Including a review of your pre-operative blood results. This can be done remotely if you live outside the Hunter.
All follow-up after surgery
2 weeks of intense follow-up straight after the operation, then reviews at 4 weeks, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months. There is no separate charge for any of these visits.
Your compression garment
Which you will wear for 4 weeks full-time and then 2 weeks during the day.
What makes up your total cost
My surgical fee
From $9,990 for the least complex cases, covering the operation, your second consultation, all follow-up and your garment.
The anaesthetist’s fee
Billed separately and based on operating time. For a 2.5 hour gluteal lipectomy this is usually around $2,300. The anaesthetist’s consultation is by phone in most cases, with the physical examination on the day of surgery.
Maitland Private Hospital fees
For theatre time and the day stay. Gluteal lipectomy is a day stay operation, so there is no overnight charge. Theatre time for 2.5 hours is usually around $4,000 and the day stay fee around $1,000.
Theatre consumables
(sutures, dressings and disposables), around $1,500, charged to patients who are not admitted under their health fund.
The quote moves up from the starting figure with the amount of skin and fat to be removed, which lengthens operating time, and where VASER liposuction (ultrasound assisted lipectomy) of the flanks or outer thighs is planned in the same operation.
Medicare and health funds
After significant weight loss, MBS item 30169 may apply to a standalone gluteal lipectomy (buttock lift). Where the operation is performed as part of a belt lipectomy (body lift), item 30179 applies to the whole procedure instead. Whether you meet the criteria is assessed at your consultation, from your weight history and examination, and cannot be worked out from a website.
If an item number applies and you hold hospital cover, your fund contributes towards the hospital and anaesthetist costs and part of my fee. How much depends on your policy and its clinical category. Without an applicable item number, the operation is cosmetic and the full cost is out of pocket.
Revision surgery, if ever needed, is charged depending on your insurance position; this is covered in the full cost guide.
For item criteria, health fund tiers, worked examples with figures, and superannuation early release, read the gluteal lipectomy (buttock lift) section of my thigh and buttock surgery cost guide.
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Your next step
You need a referral from your GP before I can see you. Ask your GP to note your weight history and how long your weight has been stable, as this is what I use to assess whether a Medicare item number applies.
Your first consultation is at my rooms in Maitland and takes about an hour. Telehealth is available if you are travelling from regional NSW or the Central Coast. After the consultation my patient coordinators prepare your written quote.