tsteves1

I'm kind of worried out this too. My arms and legs are my biggest concern as I have no hope to have some bangin bikini rockin body but it would be nice to feel comfortable in shorts and a tank top in the summer time. I am hoping that age is on my side with this one. I have been told that they key is to lose weight slowly, exercise plenty, and keep hydrated and moisturized. I am not sure how I feel about having surgery to remove excess skin but I guess after working so hard to get in shape it may be something I would consider, not until after babies though. : )

My rep sent me the requirements for my insurance in writing which is great. I now have a major concern though. She sent me a list of surgeons and website where I can view their requirements. I read that they will want a letter of medial necessity from my Primary Care physician and I do not have one. I have always gone straight to the Dr that I know can fix the issue. For my PsuedoTumor Cerebri I have a neurologist, for my fertility problems I have an OBGYN, for my back problems a chiro. I have never went to a primary care physician for my weight because my neurologist said they would just subscribe pills and told me to do WW, which I did many times as well as the HCG diet and many other fad/crash diets. I can get a Primary care physician if they want just hoping this doeskin derail me.

Thanks all for the information and advice. This is information that my insurance company gave. When you call/go online for my insurance company they refer you to the Optum Health resource center to get information and start the process. The lady at the resource center was very specific in telling me that there are no supervised diet requirements, just a psych eval and a BMI of 40+ or a BMI of 35+ with co-morbidity. She actually sounded very surprised and told me that my company had picked a great plan. The only reason that I doubt what she is saying is my own pre-conceived notion that insurance companies say one thing and then do another. I do believe she may be sending it to me in writing in the next few days, if not I will definitely request that they do. Seeing your responses really helped me feel more comfortable though.

They cover 80% after I pay my 2K deductible and my OOP max is 4k. My company gives me 1k to put toward it and count toward my OOP max so I only have to pay 3k OOP.

So I talked to a woman at the resource center and she said that I qualify even though I don't have a co-morbidity because my BMI is over 40. She also said there is no 6 months diet plan, just your typical evaluations like psych and such and I could probably have the surgery here is the next few months. She has scheduled a phone meeting with me and a case worker at the resource center for next week 1/12 at 11 to get everything rolling. She is also sending me information on the surgical center I am required to go through and told me I could research their surgeons and pick the one that I want. It also looks like I may only have to pay 3k OOP rather than the 6 I was originally expecting. Seems the only thing I have to do is keep my BMI at 40+ until everything is confirmed which is not a problem as I cant seem to get any of the weight off anyway. Point is, this seems too simple to really be true. I would love some input from people on this. I would like to hear from people that were told it was this easy to get this approved and it turned into a nightmare as well as people who really did have such an easy process in the beginning. I'm trying to not get too excited yet but the hope is building and I can finally start to see the possibility of a new and better me. By the was my insurance is United Healthcare and my plan is a Choice Plus HRA through Wells Fargo.

Thanks for the welcome. My new insurance company finally had all of my info up on Monday so I called yesterday and got the ball rolling, sadly in a different direction I had previously started but everything sounds ok so far. I cant use the surgeon I originally chose because my insurance requires i go through their resource center. They explained my benefits, what is covered and what percentages I will be required to pay and sent my info to a case worker who will call me in the next 2 days to explain the requirements further, get me set up with a surgeon and get a nurse case worker set up for me. Now I am just trying to figure out what I will have to pay as my deductible is 2k and the insurance company pays 80% after I meet that, however my OOP max for my insurance is 4k. I am trying to figure out if that means I will have to pay a max of 6k or 4k. I am sure the case worker will explain it all to me.

Hello! My name is Tracie Steves and I am just started my attempt to take the Lap Band journey. I will attend the seminar on January 11th and turn in the paperwork at that time. I plan to contact the insurance company next week, I have just switched from Select Health to United Healthcare and all I know so far is that they cover it but I don't have the requirements for my plan yet. I found this board that night and it had a lot of helpful information so I decided to join early. It sounds like this is a roller coaster of a journey but I am excited at the prospect.