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Has Anyone Had Issues Getting Cigna Ins. To Approve?



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I am just gathering info & getting details about Lapband, so any info that can be shared would be great!

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Cigna approved mine right away. I had to have documentation of a 6 months medically supervised diet, BMI of 35+ and at least 2 comorbidities. They paid 100 % of my surgery and for all of the preop testing and procedures. I only had to pay copays. I'm not sure if yours is the same but I had a great experience with them. Good luck!

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I'm going through the process now. They have decreased the supervised weight management from 6 months to 3 months. I'm just gathering all my info now. I have a BMI of 39% plus Diabetes and high cholesterol. Doctors office said it should be very easy to get approved. :-)

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I posted this somewhere else, but just in case you didn't see I'll put it here too. I'm with Cigna and they did approve me on the first try. They have their requirements listed on their website, and from what I hear as long as you have all of the required paperwork submitted, they're pretty good about approving you. So I think this is a great insurance company to be with for the band.

They did make me wait the full 30 days that they were legally allowed though, no matter how many times I called. My theory is that the only way to get that expedited is to have your surgeon give them a preliminary surgery date. My surgeon doesn't schedule preliminary dates until after insurance approval because of how many people they get, and they told me that ALL of their Cigna patients have to wait the 30 days. I've seen a lot of people on here who didn't have to wait though, so if you can get your doctor to send in a preliminary surgery date when he submits you to Cigna, you may have a quicker wait time. Good luck!

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I heard that they changed their requirements to 3 months but that if you started 6 months you have to finish the 6 months anyone been told same thing

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That's not true, I started with a six month requirement but True Results called me right before my fourth visit to tell me about the changes. They bumped up my next visit so I could take my lab work and I was submitted to Cigna soon after that. They approved me on the first try.

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I went to my surgeon meeting Wed and they sent me away said I had to come back on Aug 1 because they said I started the 6 month and cigna said I had to complete I guess Mon morning I will call

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I have CIGNA too.

Fine print says obesity surgery is not covered.

Phone rep says not covered.

Submitted it just for fun and they are saying I need 3 nutritional and a Dr. recommend.

Had surgery before this was settled and don't know where we'll go with this.

Whatever you do - just get it in writing because depending on where you reside - CIGNA has different provisions.

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I am waiting on approval from Cigna. I completed the 6 month supervised weight loss ( they changed the requirements to 3 months when I was at the 6 month mark), had a letter from my doctior and from a psychiatrist. They still came back for more information. the surgery center has sent the information and now I'm waiting. The original paperwork was submitted on July 2nd. They told me that Cigna is the worst for taking the full 30 days and very rarely gives a decision earlier. The waiting is frustrating!

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I am waiting on approval from Cigna. I completed the 6 month supervised weight loss ( they changed the requirements to 3 months when I was at the 6 month mark), had a letter from my doctior and from a psychiatrist. They still came back for more information. the surgery center has sent the information and now I'm waiting. The original paperwork was submitted on July 2nd. They told me that Cigna is the worst for taking the full 30 days and very rarely gives a decision earlier. The waiting is frustrating!

Cigna has definitely changed because I did the 6 months and was denied on day 1 for lack of information and they had my birth year wrong. They said I was under 18. As soon as that all got corrected I approved on day 3,

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      1. This update has no replies.
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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. LeighaTR

        I hope your surgery on Wednesday goes well. You will be able to do all sorts of new things as you find your new normal after surgery. I don't know this from experience yet, but I am seeing a lot of positive things from people who have had it done. Best of luck!

    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

    • CaseyP1011

      Officially here for a long time, not just a good time💪
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
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