A breast lift and a mastopexy are two ways to describe lifting the nipple to a more youthful appearance and reshaping the breast without a significant reduction in volume. Of course, the act of removing skin will reduce the breast volume and some additional breast tissue is usually removed to assist with creating a more youthful shape. That being said, a mastopexy or breast lift aims to keep volume and reshape that volume. In a breast reduction, the nipple is lifted, the breast is reshaped, and breast tissue is removed from strategic areas to make the breasts smaller. These operations can be thought of on a spectrum. While insurance companies tend to consider a mastopexy a cosmetic procedure, breast reduction surgery is sometimes covered by insurance if certain criteria are met.