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Fingers crossed!!!! Keep us posted!!!

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Cigna denies almost EVERYONE upfront. I was in tears the day I got mine. Then my primary dr just sent a new updated letter and two weeks later got my approval. Hold tight, it'll happen!

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Thanks for all the awesome support :-)

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Cigna denied me twice, denied the peer to peer then finally approved with bloodworm and extra documentation from PCP. I will keep my fingers crossed for you.

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I meant to say bloodwork.

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Good luck! Don't you think that part of the reason they are denying the surgery to morbidly obese people is that they hope the person will die while they are waiting? I know that that is a cynical remark, but...

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I don't want to get to excited yet. But I called Cinga and the automated service said it has been approved. So I called my doctors office to let them know asap. My birthday is next week so would love a date for my surgery as my birthday gift ;-)

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Oh you got it in the bag baby!! Perfect birthday present!@

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Sounding pretty awesome Mary. Keeping my fingers crossed for you.

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Good luck! Don't you think that part of the reason they are denying the surgery to morbidly obese people is that they hope the person will die while they are waiting? I know that that is a cynical remark, but...

That is pretty cynical. LOL. In my opinion it all comes down to mostly money.

1. They want to ensure the patient is serious about changing their lifestyle and not just getting this magical surgery.

2. I believe they deny purposely with the hopes that the patient will give up their pursuit for coverage. Think about it, If they get two or three people out of a pool of 50 on a monthly basis to just give up after the first denial think about the money they would save in a years time.

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Yeah but the flip side of that is...they will pay more down the line due to a lot of serious health issues that comes along with being morbidly obese. That was one of the reasons Medicare started covering bariatric surgery. Yeah they mighy shell out (or more like the tax payers will shell out) a big chunk off the bat, but if that lowers BP, cholesterol, DM and so on, then its worth it for them. Its a win win for both parties. But I agree with them finding canidates who are serious about it. I was never denied, but I called Cigna and was active with them and my PCP and the bariatric doctors office. Plus I'd had them back when I was thinner, so they watched all the weight pile on and all the comorbidities that went with the weight gain so maybe that's why they immediately approved me...

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I have been aproved and have a date now. Sept 10th. Can't wait!!!

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I have finally been officially approved by Cinga. My Surgery date has changed and is scheduled for 9/17. This has been so stress for with the back and fourth with them. If I did not call them I would've still been waiting. Now I can be happy :-) liquid diet start tomorrow.

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Congratulations!! Also my Wife is being banded on the 16th!!

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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. 
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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

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    • ChunkCat

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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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