I hate all of you that got your surgery covered by insurance!! lol :thumbup: I have a good job, I make decent money ($100 of which comes out of EACH paycheck for my CRAPPY insurance!) and yet there of course is a exclusion clause in our healthcare plan for WLS. I think it's SO WRONG that insurance providers are able to do this to people that NEED this for their health! So now I'm forced to put myself in a big hole of debt that I really can't afford in the first place, just to help myself be healthy..... Makes me so mad... :wink5: I'm jealous of all of you that had your surgery covered! You're lucky!

I was self-pay too it is hard to see yourself spend that much money. I put mine on a credit card with a very low interest rate. If you are taking meds for anything that might change as you lose weight you can apply that to your payment too. I was so happy to be able to do it. It must be hard to pay for insurance and when you need it they are not there for you. Sorry.

Cheri

That sucks I'm so sorry for you I know that without insurance and a medical spending account to pay my out-of-pocket, I would not be able to do this.....

Hi Sheri and ACalvin - thanks for the support! lol I had just been thinking that in my head after reading about all the lucky ones that have good insurance that I had to vent! :thumbup:

I am putting half on a credit card and the other half paying cash - that's why I am having to wait until January - after tax returns! I wish you both all the best in your weight loss journey!

Im looking into self pay options myself. Insurance MIGHT cover me...I just dont know yet. Good luck, and I do think it is sooo worth it even if you have to do self pay.

Im looking into self pay options myself. Insurance MIGHT cover me...I just dont know yet. Good luck, and I do think it is sooo worth it even if you have to do self pay.

I agree 110% Paige... there's pretty much nothing that can talk me out of doing this now... I'll deal with the penny pinching and things being tighter, I'm okay with that. I just want to be happy again. :thumbup:

That sucks I'm so sorry for you I know that without insurance and a medical spending account to pay my out-of-pocket, I would not be able to do this.....

Yeah another NC girl...Best of luck on your Surgery consult 12/01

I was self pay and I kinda regret the big hole of debt I got myself into. I used a lower interest card but still. . . has been a big burden financially and frankly. . I'm doing kinda crappy! (My own fault, I'm an emotional eater and sadly the band doesn't fix that!) Be wise financially and good luck to you!

I'm self pay also, I moved back in with my mom to cover my monthly payment. 400.00 a month for 3 years. That was my rent, so that it how I justified it.Could have bought a brand new car, but I would be big and fat and depressed driving around in a nice car, or I could be thin and happy driving around in a beat up truck.:wink2: I chose the thin happy and beat up truck easily over fat and miserable riding in style!

I'm sorry your insurance won't cover WLS. When you have to pay that much for insurance, it would be nice if it covered everything for your health.

I'm one of the lucky ones that my insurance covered the surgery. Believe me, I know how lucky I am. I think those of us that were able to have insurance pay for the surgery do know that we are the lucky ones and we wish everyone could have it covered by insurance.

I hope things work out well for you.

Carol

My insurance covered my surgery. I will have it done November 15th, Monday. My doctor is out of network so I had to pay 4200 dollars out of pocket. He did this because it covers the next two full years of fills or God forbid, any other surgery I may need. ie, slips, etc. My ride so far has been well worth it, even though I haven't had the surgery yet. I have been taken off of all meds except my physch med was changed to a smaller one. I can hardly wait to see what life has in store for me in the future.

I also agree and wish that everyone that is in need of WLS could be covered by their health insurance policy. The fact that this procedure is not covered might have nothing to do at all with your insurance company. The company you work for might have elected to choose a plan that excludes WLS in order to have reduced premiums.

Best of luck to you.

I'm from Canada so I am automatically "self-pay" as our insurance system does not cover WLS, as far as I know. It took me a long time to come to terms with the expense, but I calculated that I will be "paying" one way or another. I am on bp meds now that cost $40 per month, almost $500 per year... in 20 years, that's $10,000 alone! And, I am supposed to be on cholesterol lowering meds that I have so far avoided, but will need for sure if I stay fat. That's another $10,000 over 20 years, at least. Then, if you add in the cost of excess food and all of the eating out (buffets and fast food) that I have overindulged in over the years... not to mention the countless diets I have tried and failed on, I have already spent a lot of money on being/staying fat! I would rather deal with the weight loss and regain my health, god-willing, to live a more productive and pleasant "rest of my life". The cost of the surgery is well-justified to me, given what the gains can be :-)

I was also a self pay patient. My surgery was in January of 2009. I am a slow but steady loser. I have had my ups and downs but firmly believe that writing that monthly check to repay the healthcare loan helped to motivate me to keep at it and not give up. I saved quite a bit of money in food costs - started packing my lunch instead of eating out, quit buying soda and junk food, and made more home cooked meals. I have lost 90 lbs (230 down to 140) and went from a size 20 to a size 10. Luckily, I was a packrat and had saved all of the sizes of clothes as I gained weight so I didn't have to spend a lot of money in clothes as I lost weight. I can finally fit into the size clothes that I wore before my 18 year old daughter was born! I could have purchased many things with the $12,500 dollars I paid for this surgery but none would have been as valuable as my improved health and the ability to be more active with my husband and children.

That is a shame that insurance companies won't cover WLS. you would think it would be cheaper to insure you in the long run because of less health issues.

I hate all of you that got your surgery covered by insurance!! lol I have a good job, I make decent money ($100 of which comes out of EACH paycheck for my CRAPPY insurance!) and yet there of course is a exclusion clause in our healthcare plan for WLS. I think it's SO WRONG that insurance providers are able to do this to people that NEED this for their health! So now I'm forced to put myself in a big hole of debt that I really can't afford in the first place, just to help myself be healthy..... Makes me so mad... I'm jealous of all of you that had your surgery covered! You're lucky! :crying:

The only reason my insurance covered mine is that I had met my deductible (sky high by the way) by having had CANCER and needing surgery for that before I got banded. I understand your frustrations, but really.. it could be worse.