Hello My name is Jenna and I am just getting the process started. I have my meeting date Aug 7th. my BMI is 37 (5'8.5" & 253Lbs) with hypertension and mechanical athropathy of the back and knees. i do have GERD, depression, anxiety, etc....I have been over weight almost my whole life. I feel like a failure as a mom. I have 2 wonderful children, a daughter that's 12 & a son that's 6. I have my PCP backing me. I need to know how u did it. how I got approved the first time. what paperwork did u send In? did u send a personal letter? you can even black out your personal information if u want to Fax/email me the Information. I don't know if that would even be a possibility. I am really nervous! I would really. appreciate your help! Thank You!!! Jenna

Your surgeon's insurance coordinator is going to be the most important person who can help you with this process. He or she should be familiar with all the major local insurance carriers, know their requirements, and know exactly how to tailor your insurance submission for the best chances of acceptance. That is the person who will put everything together and actually make the submission.

As far as I know, things like personal letters only come into play if you have been denied and are appealing the denial.

I never even saw my insurance submission, so I can't send you anything helpful there. I had a sit-down meeting with my insurance coordinator at my intake visit and we went over all my requirements in detail and set up a time-table for getting everything in. When it was all in, she submitted everything and I was approved in under 24 hours. So when you do have your appointment with your bariatric team, make sure you ask lots of questions about how they manage the approval process and what you need to do in order to have a successful submission package. Meet with the insurance coordinator if possible. I guess that's my best advice. Good luck to you!

I am also waiting to submit my request. I have everything done except for one visit with PCP which is scheduled for Aug 9. The PCP's office will fax everthing to the surgeon's office and then the insurance coordinator will fax all of my records to the insurance company. I was given a check list when I met with surgeon's offic the first time. Everything is done except for the last weigh in with PCP. I have talked to my insurance company person who does the bariatric cases and she feels that I have everything I need and that I should be approved with no problem. Just waiting for Aug 9 and then we will see!