- About
- Specialties & Areas of Expertise
- Locations & Patient Information
- Education & Research
- Accepted Insurance
- External Professional Relationships
William Gao, MD, is a fellowship-trained laryngologist passionate about helping people with voice, airway and swallowing problems. Working with a multidisciplinary team to ensure the highest level of holistic care, Dr. Gao uses state-of-the-art technology for both diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of laryngeal disorders. He specializes in minimally invasive, in-office treatments, such as vocal cord injections, laser procedures, and EMG-guided laryngeal Botox injections. Common conditions he treats include:
- Hoarseness (Dysphonia)
- Vocal Cord Polyps, Cysts, Nodules, and Scar (Sulcus Vocalis)
- Vocal Cord Paralysis
- Laryngeal Dystonia (Spasmodic Dysphonia)
- Vocal Cord Cancer and Dysplasia
- Recurrent Respiratory (Laryngeal) Papillomatosis
- Laryngeal, Subglottic, and Tracheal Airway Stenosis
- Cricopharyngeal Dysfunction
- Zenker’s Diverticulum
Dr. Gao’s expertise extends to voice restoration surgery, voice-preserving laser removal of voicebox cancers, airway reconstruction and surgical treatments for swallowing disorders. His philosophy of care centers on personalized medicine and healing. By recognizing that each patient is a unique individual, Dr. Gao guides his patients in making shared healthcare decisions to promote wellbeing and better quality of living.
As a researcher, Dr. Gao’s work has focused on innovative surgical techniques, novel laryngeal injectables and advancing care for laryngeal dystonia. He is dedicated to drawing on discoveries within basic science to better our clinical understanding and management of complex laryngologic conditions.
Specialties
Areas of Expertise
- Airway Disorders
- Dysphonias
- Head and Neck Surgery
- Laryngeal Surgery (Voice Care)
- Laryngeal Cancer
- Laryngeal Dystonia
- Minimally Invasive ENT Surgery
- Professional and Singing Voice Care
- Reconstructive Airway Surgery
- Vocal Cord Dysplasia
- Vocal Fold Paralysis
Board Certifications
- Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
Practicing Since
- 2013
Languages Spoken
- English
Medical Education
- Jefferson Medical College
Internship
- Medstar Georgetown University Hospital
Residency
- MedStar Georgetown University Hospital
Fellowship
- University of Southern California
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.
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.