Hi guys -

I'm very confused about what guidelines a doctor uses to determine eligibility for Lap Band. I know that insurance generally uses 40+ BMI or lower with medical co-morbidities. Is there a point where they wouldn't do it? I've seen some people in the other areas of the board that had fairly decent BMIs (under 35) and under 50 pounds to lose and that surprised me. Just curious if anyone knows cause I have friends who could possibly qualify that I didn't think would before. Thanks.

It would seem that if you are self pay, there are less hoops to jump through and less requirements that have to do with weight. From what I've read on this board every geographic area, and indeed every clinic has there own set of criteria. It also depends on co-morbidities, family history etc. It seems pretty individualized.

My surgeon and insurance have the same requirements--BMI over 35 with at least one comorbidity or BMI over 40 with no comorbidities. My surgeon wants patients to be at least 100 lbs overweight. When I went to my seminar he addressed self-pay issues and didn't mention whether or not any of the requirements are waived for self-pay.

I see a lot of tickers on here and really wonder why someone would have surgery at certain weights. But we don't really know everybody's histories, if they have yo-yo'ed for years, if they have medical problems, etc. I also can see where the band can be a preventative because if your weight is only going up, why wait until you need to lose 150 lbs if you can do it when you only need to lose 80?