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Yan Lai

Yan Lai, MD, MPH

Anesthesiologist

My Role at MSK

Areas of Expertise

My Specialties

  • Regional Anesthesiology, Orthopedic Anesthesiology
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Dr. Lai's Office Information
Languages: English, Cantonese, and Mandarin

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About Me

What I Do at MSK
  • Associate Attending Physician
Get To Know Me

I am a board-certified anesthesiologist with specialty training in regional anesthesia and acute pain management. I specialize in providing anesthesia and pain management for surgeries for all types of cancer. My main areas of clinical expertise are anesthetizing nerves and limbs using sonography, which results in faster recovery and pain control after surgery.

My Role at MSK

An anesthesiologist (a-nes-THEE-zee-AH-loh-jist) is a doctor with special training in medication to make you sleep during your surgery or procedure. They monitor your vital signs while you’re asleep.

Areas of Expertise

My Specialties

  • Regional Anesthesiology, Orthopedic Anesthesiology
Education & Honors

Education

  • MD, MPH SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University

Residencies

  • Anesthesiology, Mount Sinai Hospital

Awards and Honors

  • Distinguished Educator in Anesthesiology Award, American Society of Anesthesiologists and Society for Education in Anesthesia (2020)
  • Fellow of the American Society of Anesthesiologists (2017)

Fellowships

  • Regional Anesthesiology and Acute Pain Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital

Board Certifications

  • Anesthesiology

Insurance Information

Understanding your insurance options is an important part of managing your cancer care. We have relationships with many common healthcare providers and plans.

Aetna

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, EPO PPO, POS, Transplant

Aetna Medicare Advantage (MTA and NYC retirees only)

In Network Coverage Type
PPO

Anthem BCBS and other BCBS licensee plans

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, EPO, HMO

See updates

Anthem BCBS Health Plus

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

See updates

Anthem Blue Cross Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, HMO, DSN

See updates

Blue Cross Blue Shield Federal Employee Program

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, PPO

See updates

Blue Cross Blue Shield states outside of NY/NJ

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, EPO PPO, POS

See updates

Carrum Health

In Network Coverage Type
Supplemental

Cigna

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, HMO

Connecticare

In Network Coverage Type
POS, EPO, HMO

Emblem

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, EPO, HMO

Offers a qualified health plan from the Health Insurance Marketplace. Call Emblem to learn more.

Emblem Essential

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

Emblem Medicare Advantage (Medicare Choice PPO Network and VIP Prime Network Only)

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, HMO

Empire Essential

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

Empire Plan / NYSHIP (Blue Cross/UnitedHealthcare split plan)

In Network Coverage Type
PPO

See updates

Fidelis

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, EPO

Offers a qualified health plan from the Health Insurance Marketplace. Call Fidelis to learn more.

Fidelis Managed Medicaid & HARP

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

Fidelis Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

First Health

In Network Coverage Type
PPO

Healthfirst

In Network Coverage Type
EPO, HMO, PPO, POS

Offers a qualified health plan from the Health Insurance Marketplace. Call Healthfirst to learn more.

Healthfirst Managed Medicaid

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

Healthfirst Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, PPO

Healthsmart

In Network Coverage Type
PPO EPO

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield New Jersey (HMO)

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

See updates

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield New Jersey (PPO)

In Network Coverage Type
PPO

See updates

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield New Jersey Omnia Tier I (EPO)

In Network Coverage Type
EPO

See updates

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield New Jersey Omnia Tier II (EPO)

In Network Coverage Type
EPO

See updates

Horizon Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, HMO

Husky CT Medicaid

In Network Coverage Type
State Government

Magnacare

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, EPO

Straight NJ Medicaid

In Network Coverage Type
State Government

Straight NY Medicaid

In Network Coverage Type
State Government

Medicare Part A&B (traditional Medicare)

In Network Coverage Type
Federal Government

Multiplan/Beech Street/PHCS

In Network Coverage Type
Supplemental

MVP

In Network Coverage Type
PPO/OAP

Non-Participating Plans with Out of Network Benefits

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, EPO, HMO

NYC Medicare Advantage Plus for City Employees

In Network Coverage Type
TBD

Oscar

In Network Coverage Type
HMO/EPO

Oxford

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, EPO

World Trade Center Health Program (WTC)

In Network Coverage Type
State Government

Qualcare

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, HMO

Tricare

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, HMO

UMR

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS

United Healthcare

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, HMO

Don't see your carrier or plan? We can help you understand your coverage.

If you don't have health insurance or are worried that your care may not be fully covered, our financial assistance programs may be able to help.

If you have questions about insurance, call us at 646-497-9176.

Make an Appointment

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New Patients

Scheduling an appointment is easy. Click or call 800-525-2225— we’re available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
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Current Patients

Request an appointment by logging on to MyMSK or calling your doctor’s office. If you aren’t registered for MyMSK, call 646-227-2593 for your Enrollment ID.

Contact and Location

Dr. Lai sees patients at two locations.

Location
New York, NY
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
1275 York Avenue New York NY 10065
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Josie Robertson Surgery Center
1133 York Avenue New York NY 10065
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Looking to see a doctor at a different location? See all MSK locations.

Colleagues

Doctors at Memorial Sloan Kettering work as teams, with specialists from all different areas. This allows us to consider all your needs together, and to give you the best possible care.

See all Anesthesiology Service doctors

Clinical Trials

Smiling doctors in the lab
Find a Clinical Trial for You

Memorial Sloan Kettering's doctors and scientists are constantly developing new treatments for cancer. MSK is typically running hundreds of clinical trials at a given time.

You may be able to participate in a clinical trial even if you are new to MSK. Search our online directory to find trial information and see more about who can participate.

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Research and Publications

Pai B.H. P, Patel S, Lai YH. Updated Clinical Review: Perioperative Use of Tranexamic Acid in Orthopedics and Other Surgeries. Advances in Anesthesia 2023 July;41(1). DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aan.2023.05.001.

Lai YH, Gui JL, Arif A, Okorozo A, Van Patten D. Design & Implementation of a Structured Electronic App-Based Intraoperative Handoff Tool for Anesthesia Care Teams: A quality improvement approach. M.E.J. Anesth 2023 Feb;30(1): 2-16.

Lai YH, Fang S, Amor D, Rosenblatt MA, Okorozo A, Parekh RM. Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Preoperative Optimization, Surgical Selection, and Complications in Patients with Hip Fracture. Ann Clin Anesth Res. 2023;7(1): 1047.

Pai BHP, Lai YH. Feasibility and Efficacy of Low Thoracic Ultrasound Guided Erector Spinae Plane Blocks in Patients Undergoing Radical Total Mastectomy with Deep Inferior Epigastric perforator (DIEP) Flap Reconstruction. Accepted for publication Ann Plast Surg. 2022 Dec 1;89(6):656-659. doi: 10.1097/SAP.0000000000003290. Epub 2022 Oct 17. PMID: 36416694.

Bh PP, Jinadu S, Okunlola O, Darkzali H, Lin HM, Lai YH. Integrating IPACK (Interspace between the Popliteal Artery and Capsule of the Posterior Knee) Block in an Enhanced Recovery after Surgery Pathway for Total Knee Arthroplasty-A Prospective Triple-Blinded Randomized Controlled Trial. J Knee Surg. 2022 Aug 9. doi: 10.1055/s-0042-1755355. PMID: 35944566

Publications on PubMed

Visit PubMed for a full listing of Dr. Lai’s journal articles. Pubmed is an online index of research papers and other articles from the US National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health.

See all on PubMed