MsKinthedesert

Well, when I first started this, I thought I wanted a lap band, changed my mind and decided for a sleeve. However, I discovered late in the game that Tricare would only cover vsg at a military hospital. So, I had to go through a bunch period classes, 6 months of seeing my primary care physician, as well as all the other normal tests. So, it took a while, but I finally got there.

Well, after 15 months of working through the approval process, I have my surgery date, Jan 14th! I am so excited, I don't have words to explain it.

Hi! I am in the same boat as you. Balboa is 3 hrs (not counting traffic) from my home. I decided to go for a sleeve instead of Lap Band, so I started the process last month. Fortunately, there are a lot of things you can do that don't require you to go there. You can have your sleep study, psych consult, and an evaluation from your primary care manager (all required) done where you are and have those records sent to Balboa. You will have to go there for pre-op education classes which are mandatory. There are 2 you will have to attend and they are usually scheduled one day after another, so to make it esy on yourself, you should plan to go, stay overnight in SD, if you can and attaend both clases over 2 days. You have a nutirtion consult you must go to, and you will have to drive there for that. They are more than likely going to require that you lose some weight and you can probably do that through a program at your local facility. I am going to my nutritionist here for those visits. You need a recent pap done (within last 3 years) and a mammogram if you are over 50 (within 1 year), but can also do those locally and have the reports sent. The best way to start is to self-refer to the bariatric surgical unit. Go to the MCSD website and go to the bariatric surgical clinic portion of the site. There is a phone number you can call and do a self-referral. They will then set an appointment for you to go to SD, attend the bariatric information session where they discuss with you surgery options and different aspects of the surgeries they perform. They do a quick screening of your info and, once they determine that you are a good candidate for surgery, give you checklist of all the things you need to do prepare for surgery. I started this joiurney almost a year ago, so I am in the process of having all my records sent to Balboa and trying to acheive the 20 lb weight loss they are requiring of me. The hardest part is I already made one trip to Balboa, and I have to go AT LEAST 2 more times before my pre-op testing and surgery, and one of those trips I will be staying overnight. Soooooo, that is what you have to look forward to. It isn't a hard process, just an extensive one. And as long do everything on the list and meet the TriCare qualifications for surgery, you WILL be approved. Hope this helps. Keep me posted and stay in touch. Blessings as you begin your journey.

Thanks -I pray all goes well for you, too.

I have been to 2 civilian surgeons, neither of whom told me that TriCare would not cover VSG outside a mtf. After finding this out for myself, I called the nearest Naval Hospital that does them and am awaiting a call for my first appointment with the surgeon there. I have already had a sleep study ( have sleep apnea and am now on a cpap), have had a psych eval done, seen a nutritionist and have another appointment for one, done 4 out of the 6 months of weight monitoring with my PCM that TriCare asked for. I have lost 14 lbs, my BMI is 51, I have hypertension and sleep apnea (2 co-morbidities), limited range of movement in my joints and I have been on this journey since Oct. 2011. I thought I wanted a Lap Band and decided to get vsg after doing the research. Can anyone think anything else I will have to do to get approval?

Hi, all! I have had orientation with my wls clinic and they think they can get Tricare, my insurance, to approve me. My BMI is well over the minimum (51) I have a couple of co-morbids (that I know of), so I am hopeful. The surgeon ( not Tricare) is requiring a sleep study, which I am having next week BUT Tricare is sending me somewhere OTHER THAN my selected clinic. If it continues this way for all my pre-op stuff, I think they may send me to another surgeon or possibly a MTF (which I am trying to avoid) to get my band. Does anyone have any input to offer from experiences with Tricare?