CREDIT FOR PLASTIC SURGERY - A warning from Dr. Brueck

Dr. Robert J. Brueck MD FACS, board certified plastic surgeon in Fort Myers, FL, regularly posts messages to this blog on subjects related to health, skin and aesthetic surgery. You may arrange notification of future postings by setting up an RSS feed Thank you.

I guess in all of us there is a certain element of impatience. We want it done yesterday – waiting can be agonizing. That principle has led to more and more people having their cosmetic surgery financing their plastic surgery with credit cards. (You could say they are using plastic to pay for their plastic surgery)

Many firms are increasing their offerings for health care credit. Citi Group has their Citi Health Card while J.P. Morgan Chase has their Choice Health Advance. Perhaps Care Credit by G.E. is the best known.

Retiring baby boomers are providing the momentum for new and varied credit cards to finance cosmetic surgery. By 2015 it is estimated that 150 billion will be spent on non-covered health procedure such as cosmetic surgery – dental implants – lasik etc. Along with their increasing popularity, there are some pitfalls to avoid or anticipate.

If you choose a healthcare credit card, it is important to fully understand the rate and condition of the credit line, ie: how long to promotional rates last. When the interest free period is over, what will the new interest rate be. This is important to know and understand.

Also, some cards will charge you retroactive rates as high as 26.99% on an unpaid balance if you are LATE in you payments. Obviously your credit score will fall if you are late on payments.

The bottom line is to plan carefully. If the 0% interest rate is for 6-12 months, pay off your balance during that time frame, or end up paying more to the creditor.