- About
- Specialties & Areas of Expertise
- Locations & Patient Information
- Education & Research
- Accepted Insurance
- External Professional Relationships
Joseph B. Meleca, MD, a board-certified otolaryngologist, specializes in head and neck surgery and facial plastic and microvascular reconstruction. Dr. Meleca’s expertise includes performing functional and cosmetic rhinoplasty, facial reanimation surgery for facial paralysis, synkinesis, facial gender affirming surgery, facial trauma, reconstruction after Mohs skin cancer resection, and head and neck reconstruction with specific experience in microvascular free tissue transfer.
In addition to his commitment to providing quality surgical otolaryngology treatment, Dr. Meleca is also involved in clinical research designed to advance care for his patients. Some of his most recent work focuses on a new staging criteria for osteoradionecrosis (ORN) of the mandible – a complication from cancer-related treatment like radiation – as well as developing new treatment options for ORN, including the fascia lata rescue free flap. His research has been published in several, highly respected journals, such as American Journal of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, The Laryngoscope, Annals of Otology, Rhinology & Laryngology and more.
Dr. Meleca also enjoys educating residents and medical students on the practice of facial plastic surgery. His teaching style incorporates hands-on experience in the operative suite and outpatient clinics to advance knowledge for the next generation of physicians and surgeons.
In addition to his commitment to providing quality surgical otolaryngology treatment, Dr. Meleca is also involved in clinical research designed to advance care for his patients. Some of his most recent work focuses on a new staging criteria for osteoradionecrosis (ORN) of the mandible – a complication from cancer-related treatment like radiation – as well as developing new treatment options for ORN, including the fascia lata rescue free flap. His research has been published in several, highly respected journals, such as American Journal of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, The Laryngoscope, Annals of Otology, Rhinology & Laryngology and more.
Dr. Meleca also enjoys educating residents and medical students on the practice of facial plastic surgery. His teaching style incorporates hands-on experience in the operative suite and outpatient clinics to advance knowledge for the next generation of physicians and surgeons.
Areas of Expertise
Board Certifications
- Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
Practicing Since
- 2022
Languages Spoken
- English
- Spanish
Medical Education
- Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
Internship
- Cleveland Clinic Foundation
Residency
- Cleveland Clinic Foundation
Fellowship
- Indiana University School of Medicine
News & Research
Insurance
- Aetna Better Health *see insurance page
- Aetna HMO (specialists only)
- Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO & PPO
- Aetna POS
- Aetna PPO
- BCBS Blue Precision HMO (specialists only)
- BCBS HMO (HMOI) (specialists only)
- BCBS Medicare Advantage HMO & PPO
- BCBS PPO
- Cigna HMO
- Cigna POS
- Cigna PPO
- CountyCare *see insurance page
- Humana Medicare Advantage Choice PPO
- Humana Medicare Advantage Gold Choice PFFS
- Humana Medicare Advantage Gold Plus HMO
- Medicare
- Multiplan PPO
- PHCS PPO
- United Choice Plus POS/PPO
- United Choice HMO (specialists only)
- United Options (PPO)
- United Select (HMO & EPO) (specialists only)
- United W500 Emergent Wrap
- University of Chicago Health Plan (UCHP)
Our list of accepted insurance providers is subject to change at any time. You should contact your insurance company to confirm UChicago Medicine participates in their network before scheduling your appointment. If you have questions regarding your insurance benefits at UChicago Medicine, please contact our financial counseling team at OPSFinancialCounseling@uchospitals.edu.
UChicago Medicine is committed to fostering a corporate culture of ethical behavior and integrity in all matters related to compliance with the laws and regulations that govern the delivery of healthcare. This aspiration is central to supporting patient care, research, and teaching at UChicago Medicine.
Some of our physicians and health professionals collaborate with external pharmaceutical, medical device, or other medical related entities to develop new treatments and products to improve clinical outcomes for patients. In some instances, the physician has ownership interests in the external entity and/or is compensated for advising or speaking about the entity’s products or treatments. These payments may include compensation for consulting and speaking engagements, equity, and/or royalties for products invented by our physicians. To assure objectivity and integrity in patient care, UChicago Medicine requires all physicians and health professionals to report their relationships and financial interests with external entities on an annual basis. This information is used to review relationships and transactions that might give rise to potential financial conflicts of interest, and when considered to be significant a management plan to mitigate any biases is created.
If you are a patient at UChicago Medicine and would like more information about your physician’s external relationships, please talk with your physician. You may also visit the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Payments website at https://openpaymentsdata.cms.gov/ . CMS Open Payments is a national disclosure program that promotes a more transparent and accountable health care system. It houses a publicly accessible database of payments that reporting entities, including drug and medical device companies, make to covered recipients like physicians and hospitals.
Information in the CMS Open Payments database could potentially contain inaccurately reported and out of date payment information. All information is open to personal interpretation, if there are questions about the data, patients and their advocates should speak directly to their health care provider for a better understanding.
Some of our physicians and health professionals collaborate with external pharmaceutical, medical device, or other medical related entities to develop new treatments and products to improve clinical outcomes for patients. In some instances, the physician has ownership interests in the external entity and/or is compensated for advising or speaking about the entity’s products or treatments. These payments may include compensation for consulting and speaking engagements, equity, and/or royalties for products invented by our physicians. To assure objectivity and integrity in patient care, UChicago Medicine requires all physicians and health professionals to report their relationships and financial interests with external entities on an annual basis. This information is used to review relationships and transactions that might give rise to potential financial conflicts of interest, and when considered to be significant a management plan to mitigate any biases is created.
If you are a patient at UChicago Medicine and would like more information about your physician’s external relationships, please talk with your physician. You may also visit the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Payments website at https://openpaymentsdata.cms.gov/ . CMS Open Payments is a national disclosure program that promotes a more transparent and accountable health care system. It houses a publicly accessible database of payments that reporting entities, including drug and medical device companies, make to covered recipients like physicians and hospitals.
Information in the CMS Open Payments database could potentially contain inaccurately reported and out of date payment information. All information is open to personal interpretation, if there are questions about the data, patients and their advocates should speak directly to their health care provider for a better understanding.