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I'm in Central Jersey also....Manalapan.....my Dr. Is Dr. Doug Ewing from Advance Laproscopic....... After removing the lapband bc of internal damage it caused bc it broke I was denied the sleeve....my bmi was too low. After the band was removed I gained the weight back and reached 35.2 BMI....the journey is not over bc my insurance UHC wants to see additional problems...my internist believes that with his letter and my six yr struggle I should get approved...but if I don't I too am considering MX.

Ok here goes...I just joined this forum to get answers as well but I feel unless I say something someone else won't get answers.....I had the lapband inserted march 2008....started at 237...5'8" (recorded but incorrect) so I met the guidelines. After a baby I went up to 259 then down to 193...lowest with band....I started having complications with the band....leaking....didn't feel Anything until three months in when started having severe pains. In and out of hospital resulted in the removal of my band.....we were waiting first for the insurance comp to approve fixing the band but they denied..."not medically necessary" since I was now not "morbidly obese"anymore..... Then tried for the sleeve...denied again..."experimental bc my bmi was below 35.....I had the band removed to find out the tube cracked.....the band was literally cutting up my insides. Since surgery on October 2, I have gained 17lbs and now meet the 35 bmi but the insurance company wants a letter of medical necessity. Normal you would have to go under supervised weight loss program monitoring for 3 months but my internal medical doctor is hopeful that his letter showing my past six year struggle will suffice. If I don't get approve under my insurance I will try my husbands and if denied under his ill end up paying for it.....I find it ironic that they knew I had a weight problem approved the first device, then when it became defective I'm no longer a candidate. Nothing within my control.....I'll be patient and wait my turn. Hopefully all goes well by the summer.