I feeling like this is taking forever!. I thought that at my appointment in November that they were going to send in all of my paperwork and every thing I had to complete before those papers got sent to my insurance. But they needed my thyroid levels from the test results I had done by my doctors office which I handed in on December 6th. But now it's a waiting game and it's making me wonder if I should call the bariatric center and ask them about it?

How long did it take everyone to get approved? It's probably just my insurance company but still ? I really hope I get approved soon so I can have a good start of the new year! ?

insurance... oh thats funny. Mine were like HELLLL NOOO! lmao. I had to pay my surgery in cash basically. But others in my bariatric center that had insurance that covered it many took 6 months + but yes call. I would call the bariatric center and your own insurance company to see what the hold up is.

I had to do 3 month's of weigh-ins and a psych eval. After those were completed, I had blood work, chest x-ray, and EKG to complete. Once all the results of that were completed they scheduled me for a Endoscopy. The doctor's office called me about a week after the Endoscopy results were in and they told me that they were submitting all my paperwork to the insurance company. It took another 3 weeks before I received the call that I was approved by the insurance company and the surgery was scheduled 3 weeks later.

Patience is a virtue here. It took me a year to get approved and my doctor had to go toe to toe with the insurance doctor at the last minute. If you really really want a goal, consistent hard work over a long time does generally work. I keep telling myself I didn’t gain the weight overnight, so I won’t loose it overnight either. I’ve cultivated an attitude of self care is important every day short term and long term. Call and follow up, but don’t miss the opportunity to learn healthy habits now.

From start to surgery took almost 3 years for me, but I know I'm an exception.

From the time I completed all the requirements and tests, it was about 4-5 months until my surgery. My chosen center is the largest in my state and they have a serious backlog just submitting things to insurance. That alone took 6-8 weeks. After we got the insurance approval back (which took another 2 weeks), it took a few weeks to get on the surgical schedule. At the time, they were scheduling 2 months out, so I had to wait another 2 months before my surgery.

In short, I understand the anxiety your feeling. It was nerve-wracking having to wait so long for a procedure that has been life-changing. I felt like I was waiting to get my life back and the constant waiting was very stressful. That said, it did allow me time to learn a lot about what to expect in post-op life, as well better prepare myself mentally for the upcoming changes. In retrospect, I think I would not have done nearly as well if I had rushed into surgery.

I had info session the first time I had went to the bari center. After that was my first appointment, meeting with a fitness coach (was require and she was in the network), nutritionist, psych eval, bundle of tests, I had to get my thyroid under control because during the blood work bundle it was too high I think, monthly weigh in, I had to meet up with physical therapy, I had to attend a class about the surgeries, I had to meet up with the nutritionist again and then my last appointment on Dec 6 was my weigh in appointment and I gave then the paper I said with my thyroid levels how they were where they are supposed to be and she submitted everything to my insurance. I know they cover the surgery because I called them way in the beginning to make sure. Just waiting for approval. It really is stressful, I really want to get this show on the road. 6 months into this so far. I have a Tele call appointment in January, but if I get my call, I can cancel that appointment, but at this rate I think ill have that appointment lol. I'm planning on calling both places.

From first consult to surgery was about 2.5 months. Most of the time was waiting for all the testing appointments I had to get done. There were also requirements back then with my insurance to prove 5 years morbid obesity then 6 months medically supervised diet in the last 2 years which was already documented by my PCP in the previous year, so I had all the months/years long requirements already documented. Once my Doc put in for insurance approval, which took 2 weeks because they were relocating, it didn't even take 1 work day for insurance approval.

Good luck,

Tek

Waiting for insurance is the pits. I have heard that once submitted they have 30 days to either approve or deny it. Perhaps you could call the insurance and ask if they received it and when (and also whether what I heard is true in all cases). I’m the mean time I agree with starting your healthy habits. One thing that was hard for me to get used to was taking the vitamins. Perhaps take a regular (non bariatric) version but take it at the same times a day you plan to take the bariatric on (also order those soon cause they take a while to shop for whatever reason and take advantage of auto ship and adjust the date based on your surgery date if you want or just stay a little ahead. Also, getting used to logging calories and water intake. You can make adjustments to calories or not it’s up to you but getting used to logging them and your fluids are things you will eventually have to do (having some idea how much water you naturally drink now may be good to know as well cause I not everyone drinks 64oz Exactly. I actually drank way more than that). Another thing that was an adjustment for me was not drinking before or after meals. Perhaps practice some of these things now and you will be ahead of the game by the time you are approved. Your surgery time will be here before you know it.

On 12/28/2022 at 8:41 AM, ShoppGirl said:

Waiting for insurance is the pits. I have heard that once submitted they have 30 days to either approve or deny it. Perhaps you could call the insurance and ask if they received it and when (and also whether what I heard is true in all cases). I’m the mean time I agree with starting your healthy habits. One thing that was hard for me to get used to was taking the Vitamins. Perhaps take a regular (non bariatric) version but take it at the same times a day you plan to take the bariatric on (also order those soon cause they take a while to shop for whatever reason and take advantage of auto ship and adjust the date based on your surgery date if you want or just stay a little ahead. Also, getting used to logging calories and Water intake. You can make adjustments to calories or not it’s up to you but getting used to logging them and your fluids are things you will eventually have to do (having some idea how much water you naturally drink now may be good to know as well cause I not everyone drinks 64oz Exactly. I actually drank way more than that). Another thing that was an adjustment for me was not drinking before or after meals. Perhaps practice some of these things now and you will be ahead of the game by the time you are approved. Your surgery time will be here before you know it.

I know. I've been making changes since my first appointment. They say I don't need specific bariatric vitamins. Right now it's cheaper to buy them from the store. Regular vitamins. I really do want the bariatric ones tho. I do have a wightloss journal all set up and I am going to start using it. I did make a water log in it. The hardest part is not being able to drink with meals. If I drink water before eating, I need to wait 30 minutes before eating and then an hour after eating before drinking.

BUT yeah I learned something yesterday! I called the bariatric center and asked about it and told them I didn't get a call yet. She told me that with my insurance I don't need an approval call. She said they sent the paperwork to the surgeons office. They transferred me over to them to schedule my surgery and I guess they aren't open on Fridays lol sooo on monday, I guess I will be scheduling my surgery!! Hopefully!

I had to see a dietician for a year prior to surgery. Pandemic happened and elective surgeries cancelled. I keep going for over 2 years in case things opened up.