I wanted to see if anyone has had a problem with insurance approving revision surgery. I feel like an absolute failure. I had a band placed in 2010 and had to have it removed because of complications and converted to a sleeve in 2015. For some reason my body just didn’t let me lose the weight as easily as I did with the band. I’ve put back all the weight since then. Im going to see my surgeon on Monday. When I called to make the appointment the lady told me that I may have a hard time with approval since I hadn’t continued to follow up with the office. I went to all my scheduled appointments and was never told I needed to continue checking in.

Im just trying to mentally prepare for my appointment. Im afraid they will tell me there is nothing they can do to help me get healthier. I just feel defeated.

I had the same path of band, sleeve, then conversion to bypass in March. I didn’t have any trouble with insurance, but I have Medicare and a supplement. I also had three different surgeons. The first two were in Mexico for the band and then Las Vegas for the sleeve so I had no follow up as well. I explained to my surgeon that I didn’t really use the sleeve properly due to stress in my life. I also had GERD which probably helped with the approval. Good luck to you, I hope that you are able to get your revision.

I'm sorry you're facing this. It is true that you likely will not lose as much with each successive surgery. If you don't have a complication from the sleeve (like GERD), your insurance will not likely approve another surgery. Most insurance only covers one bariatric surgery per person, lifetime.

Other options you have include meeting with a nutritionist and bariatric therapist to work with the sleeve you already have, or paying out of pocket for the bypass .

Good luck!