Cataract Surgery Brisbane
Premium Lens Replacement

Your initial optometrist assessment is free. Every patient proceeding to surgery has a paid specialist surgeon consultation to confirm suitability, discuss their specific procedure and arrange surgery. The consultation fee is deducted from the surgery price for every procedure if you proceed. Prescribed medications and eye drops are purchased separately; eligible patients can access PBS subsidies for eligible prescriptions. See our pricing details.

At Focus Vision, premium cataract surgery costs range from $2,500 to $5,500 per eye, depending on the type of premium lens chosen and your private health insurance. If you have hospital cover that includes cataract surgery (Medicare item number 42702) for at least 12 months, your fund will contribute to theatre and anaesthetic fees. A detailed written quote is always provided before any procedure is booked — no surprises. The paid specialist surgeon consultation fee is deducted from the surgery price if you proceed. Prescribed medications and eye drops are purchased separately. If a small prescription remains once your eye has settled, laser fine-tuning is free for two years under our enhancement policy.

Yes. Cataract surgery is a Medicare-covered procedure under item number 42702 when clinically indicated. Medicare provides a rebate for the surgeon's fee, and private health insurance with hospital cover contributes to theatre and anaesthetic costs. The additional cost of premium lens upgrades (multifocal, EDOF, or toric lenses) is an out-of-pocket expense not covered by Medicare or health funds. Focus Vision provides a full written cost estimate before your procedure.

Standard cataract surgery uses a basic monofocal lens — most patients still need reading glasses afterwards. Premium surgery uses multifocal, EDOF, or toric lenses that can correct distance, intermediate, and near vision, often eliminating the need for glasses entirely. The right lens depends on your lifestyle and visual demands.

No. At Focus Vision our default is to have you fast asleep for cataract surgery, sedated by a specialist anaesthetist. Patients have no memory of the procedure. You will not experience pain — anaesthetic eye drops are also used so there are no needles around the eye. You arrive at the South Brisbane Day Hospital, meet the anaesthetic team, and wake up in recovery. The procedure itself takes less than 20 minutes per eye.

Possibly. The capsule that holds your lens implant can gradually cloud over months or years later (posterior capsule opacification). It is more common in younger patients and is cleared with a quick, usually painless YAG laser in the clinic. If you had your cataract surgery at Focus Vision, your YAG laser is done at no cost. See YAG laser after cataract surgery or RLE.

Most patients notice improved vision within 24 to 48 hours of cataract surgery. You can typically return to light activities and driving within a few days, once your surgeon confirms your vision at your first follow-up appointment. Most patients return to work after 48 hours. Full visual stabilisation, particularly with premium multifocal lenses, can take a few weeks as brain adapts to the new lens optics.

This depends on whether you have a health fund or not. Generally, if you have a health fund the eyes are done on separate days. If you do not have a health insurance fund then you can have both eyes done on the same day or different days. See cataract surgery on both eyes on the same day.

Focus Vision offers a full range of premium intraocular lenses customised to each patient's lifestyle and visual needs, including Extended Depth of Focus (EDOF) lenses for excellent distance and intermediate vision with minimal halos, trifocal multifocal lenses for distance, intermediate and near vision, toric lenses to correct astigmatism, and combinations of these technologies. Our surgeons are key opinion leaders for leading ophthalmic device companies, meaning our patients access the latest available lens technology.

Often, yes. A multifocal upgrade lens, the 1stQ AddOn, can be placed in front of your existing monofocal lens to add near and intermediate vision, without removing the original lens. It isn't suitable for every eye, and Medicare doesn't cover it. See multifocal upgrade lens after cataract surgery.

Public cataract surgery is free, but you usually wait for a specialist appointment and then for surgery, you can't choose your surgeon, and a standard monofocal lens is usually provided. As a private patient at Focus Vision, you choose your surgeon, who performs your whole operation, and your lens, including toric, EDOF and multifocal options. See public vs private cataract surgery.

At Focus Vision, all cataract surgery is performed by corneal subspecialists — Dr Brendan Cronin and Dr David Gunn — who have completed international fellowship training and who use detailed diagnostic and measurement technology, including topography, biometry, and wavefront aberrometry. Focus Vision uses the free Refractive Outcomes Analyzer tool — developed by our own surgeons — to continuously benchmark outcomes against ESCRS international standards, ensuring you benefit from data-driven, rigorously measured surgical precision.