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well i just found out something that really set me bACK for a minute...i am pretty organized girl and thought i asked all the right ?s during this process...but i forgot to ask one important ?.. i have Blue Blue shield Fed insurance. i have had to pay $35.oo co-pay each time i have seen the surgeon for my pre-approval process. so i just assumed once i started going to get my band filled, that would be what i would be paying. i havent read anything different, when i called ins company when i started this process, they never mentioned it and the surgoen office didnt mention this. but i got to thinkg and figured i better not assume..i called ins company and surgoen office and they both told me that i will have to pay $150 each time i get my bad filled bc my ins company considers the fills as an "out patient procedure"....i was really upset when i first heard this and kinda got depressed about if this was all worth it. but after talking it all out with my husband and friends, i am still proceeding with my surgery. i have already invested so much time, money and work into this and thank goodness i can finacially afford these co-pays. i have a friend who had lap ban done a few yrs ago and has united healthcare for her ins and she says she hasnt had to pay anything for her fills all this time..the only reason im posting this is because i cant imagine im the only person who didnt know that there could be larger co-pays for the fills. as i said, its not going to stop my from doing this but im just glad i found out now and can plan accordingly versus finding out when i got there for my first fill!!!!! so just FYI for everyone else..... 001_huh.gif

That is too bad to hear- do you have an out of pocket max per year? My OOP is $3000, so I should be pretty much covered without the surgery. I am still waiting to see the claims appear for my sleep study consult and the actual study and the surgeon. After my OOP, all in-network care will be paid for the rest of the year. I plan on being at the surgeon's office as much as necessary until December 31 :)

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I dont have a date yet but sure hope it's in March. Im waiting for insurance approval. How long did yours take from sending to insurance to approval?

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Okay. I've known my surgery date is March 15 for a week now. I'm still very excited, but why does it feel like things are moving so slowwwww now? Does anybody else feel like this? I attended by support group last week. This week I have to attend an educational seminar on the pre-op diet, surgery day and post-op. On the 27th I have my pre-op testing and an office visit. I've started buying different kinds of flavored water and tasting different Protein Shakes. I just can't seem to get started with the exercising, guess I'm so preoccupied with everything else. Well maybe I will feel different after my educational seminar on Thursday.

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My insurance won't cover the lap band surgery, so I'm self pay. Since January, things have really been progressing. That's why I was able to get a surgery date so soon.

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My approval was really quick. The coordinator put my information in the system on Jan 9 and blue cross approved it immediately. I received my approval letter on the 11th. However, I had a 270 day waiting period that is up march 2. The 14th is the next available surgery date

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Okay. I've known my surgery date is March 15 for a week now. I'm still very excited, but why does it feel like things are moving so slowwwww now? Does anybody else feel like this? I attended by support group last week. This week I have to attend an educational seminar on the pre-op diet, surgery day and post-op. On the 27th I have my pre-op testing and an office visit. I've started buying different kinds of flavored water and tasting different Protein Shakes. I just can't seem to get started with the exercising, guess I'm so preoccupied with everything else. Well maybe I will feel different after my educational seminar on Thursday.

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Hi all. I'm March 7th I can't wait!! I start my liquid diet two weeks before which would be the 22nd. I'm so excited yet nervous since I want this to work so bad....

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I dont have a date yet but sure hope it's in March. Im waiting for insurance approval. How long did yours take from sending to insurance to approval?

It won't be submitted until later this month. I have a $5000 lifetime benefit and, according to the coordinator at the dr. office, they very rarely deny them when there is a benefit. She said normal turn around is 48 hours but they had one that just took 1 week. I keep thinking, what if I get everything done and they deny it!! I know many people are in the same situation and have been denied. Oh well...the waiting game will begin soon. Good luck to you!!

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Hey everyone just received my date march 8th, I am super nervous!!!Looks like we are all will be march bansters afterall:)

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Already everyone.... ALL abroad, May date is March 2nd, 2012, cannt wait. Think we will all need help getting threw this.

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Hey everyone just received my date march 8th, I am super nervous!!!Looks like we are all will be march bansters afterall:)

Ok Rose we are going to be partners....

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Hi all. I'm March 7th I can't wait!! I start my liquid diet two weeks before which would be the 22nd. I'm so excited yet nervous since I want this to work so bad....

Ok my date is March 2, 2012

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Congrats AFB! Have you started the pre-op diet? Good luck to you! My ins approval can be turned in the end of next week so I'm praying it all goes through without any glitches!

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Another march bandster here! I am on the 8th! Can't wait but freaking out at the same time!

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    • Aunty Mamo

      Iʻm roughly 6 weeks post-op this morning and have begun to feel like a normal human, with a normal human body again. I started introducing solid foods and pill forms of medications/supplements a couple of weeks ago and it's really amazing to eat meals with my family again, despite the fact that my portions are so much smaller than theirs. 
      I live on the island of Oʻahu and spend a lot of time in the water- for exercise, for play,  and for spiritual & mental health. The day I had my month out appointment with my surgeon, I packed all my gear in my truck, anticipating his permission to get back in the ocean. The minute I walked out of that hospital I drove straight to the shore and got in that water. Hallelujah! My appointment was at 10 am. I didn't get home until after 5 pm. 
      I'm down 31 pounds since the day of surgery and 47 since my pre-op diet began, with that typical week long stall occurring at three weeks. I'm really starting to see some changes lately- some of my clothing is too big, some fits again. The most drastic changes I notice however are in my face. I've also noticed my endurance and flexibility increasing. I was really starting to be held up physically, and I'm so grateful that I'm seeing that turn around in such short order. 
      My general disposition lately is hopeful and motivated. The only thing that bugs me on a daily basis still is the way those supplements make my house smell. So stink! But I just bought a smell proof bag online that other people use to put their pot in. My house doesn't stink anymore. 
       
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    • BeanitoDiego

      Oh yeah, something I wanted to rant about, a billing dispute that cropped up 3 months ago.
      Surgery was in August of 2023. A bill shows up for over $7,000 in January. WTF? I asks myself. I know that I jumped through all of the insurance hoops and verified this and triple checked that, as did the surgeon's office. All was set, and I paid all of the known costs before surgery.
      A looong story short, is that an assistant surgeon that was in the process of accepting money from my insurance company touched me while I was under anesthesia. That is what the bill was for. But hey, guess what? Some federal legislation was enacted last year to help patients out when they cannot consent to being touched by someone out of their insurance network. These types of bills fall under something called, "surprise billing," and you don't have to put up with it.
      https://www.cms.gov/nosurprises
      I had to make a lot of phone calls to both the surgeon's office and the insurance company and explain my rights and what the maximum out of pocket costs were that I could be liable for. Also had to remind them that it isn't my place to be taking care of all of this and that I was going to escalate things if they could not play nice with one another.
      Quick ending is that I don't have to pay that $7,000+. Advocate, advocate, advocate for yourself no matter how long it takes and learn more about this law if you are ever hit with a surprise bill.
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    • BeanitoDiego

      Some days I feel like an infiltrator... I'm participating in society as a "thin" person. They have no idea that I haven't always been one of them! 🤣
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    • ChunkCat

      Thank you everyone for your well wishes! I totally forgot I wrote an update here... I'm one week post op today. I gained 15 lbs in water weight overnight because they had to give me tons of fluids to bring my BP up after surgery! I stayed one night in the hospital. Everything has been fine except I seem to have picked up a bug while I was there and I've been running a low grade fever, coughing, and a sore throat. So I've been hydrating well and sleeping a ton. So far the Covid tests are negative.
      I haven't been able to advance my diet past purees. Everything I eat other than tofu makes me choke and feels like trying to swallow rocks. They warned me it would get worse before it gets better, so lets hope this is all normal. I have my follow up on Monday so we'll see. Living on shakes and soup again is not fun. I had enough of them the first time!! LOL 
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    • BeanitoDiego

      Still purging all of the larger clothing. This morning, a shirt that I ADORED wearing ended up on top. Hard to let it go, but it was also hard to let go of those habits that also no longer serve my highest good. Onward and upward!
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