Well, I went to a symposium today to find out about the lap band procedure (tho i really didnt learn anything new as i had investigated it already). What i WAS surprised by was the program fee they charged...apparently from reading some of the posts here, this is a normal process? This group charges $1250. To be honest, i was dismayed at this - im struggling financially as it is - to take on another bill is too much..yet...i want this procedure so much that somehow i do have to come up with the money. They did have Care credit brochures, so maybe thats an answer.

So...am i to believe then - that this is pretty normal - this charge - for follow up care and such?

I'm sure the fees vary but that sounds kinda high, my program fee was $750 but since I could not use the milk based protein shakes that were part of the pre-op diet I only ended up having to pay $500. Make sure you know exactly what is included in your program fee so you dont have unexpected out of pocket on top of that. It might seem like a big chunk of money up front, but it is worth it. Good Luck.

Program fees range from $250 to $7500 to $0.

Some of the stuff that is typically included is the sort of thing that a lot of insurances won't pay for, particularly aftercare. A good program will have a LOT Of aftercare including message boards, newsletters, support groups and access to nutritionists and counselors. That stuff cost money and someone has to pay for it.

I would shop around. If you can't find a group you like as well as the one you have now that doesn't have a fee, then consider it money well spent to get a good outcome. But don't assume that you have to pay a fee to get a good program. It really varies.

Yeah, i started thinking about what they mentioned..after care, support group, newsletters, etc..and for a "lifetime"...so ultimately i guess it makes sense....i just hadnt had a clue about this fee...thank you for the response..

Shop around that seems really high. I think the Realize Band has a support forum that you get access to after the surgery. And of course there are places like this. I have been to 3 seminars met with 1 doc, have an appointment on Mon. with the group I think I will use. The first two tried to push a 6 month structed weight program at me for about $400 telling me my insurance required it. NOT!!! It took a lot of emails and phone calls but I finally found out from TriCare that it was not a requirement from them. These two groups had program fees at $400 & $450. Nutrion eval at about $80, nutrion classes $200 for first and another $100 for the second. One even required you do Optifast for 2 weeks to the tune of $300. Neither of these surgical groups talked much about post care. Fills and any visits would be billed. So really shop around. Someone here told me about the guy I will see on Mon. they have no program fees and listed the insurance requirements for several companies in the packet they handed out at the seminar.:thumbup:

The program fee for the group that I used was $1250. I didn't do enough homework on finding the groups offered through my insurance company so I was stuck. I had already paid the non-refundable fee when I realized that there was one more clinic I could have gone through. Don't get me wrong, I don't regret going through the doctor that I did, but it would have been nice not to pay that fee. My fee includes the support groups, free visits (not fills though) during a specified time, and costs of them being a bariatric group of distinction.