Hello everyone,

I am going to my first medical consultation in a few weeks and I don't know what to expect. What happens at this appointment? I'm kind of scared.

IF you've already been to a seminar, and are sure this is your choice plan of action, they will weigh you, check your blood pressure, perhaps take some measurements, discuss the pre-op testing, when they may be able to do your surgery, and that sort of thing.

I suggest that you call your insurance company now (there's a phone number for customer service on your insurance card). Give them your policy number and ask if lap band is covered. If affirmative, then ask

1. Is there a pre-op surpervised diet requirement?

2. What pre-op testing do you require (they may require a nutritionist consultant and a psych. evaluation)?

3. What do they require your surgeon to submit to them to get you approved? They may require a letter of medical necessity from your primary care physician and you could go ahead and get this ASAP and check it off your list.

4. Ask if they require that you have reached a certain BMI, does that number vary with co-morbidities, and do they require that you have been at that BMI for a specific period of time?

5. Do they need a weight history? I say this because some policies require a 5 year weight history as part of the submission. You can get this from your primary care physician and/or OBGYN but just find out if you need it.

6. GET THE NAME OF THE PERSON YOU TALKED TO.

If you do this part, when you go to the surgeon's office, there won't be any surprises. You will know ABSOLUTELY that your procedure is covered and what is needed. I've read way too many posts on this site where peopl get down to the submission only to find out something wasn't done and it postpones their surgery. I've read where people have been told by their surgeon's staff their procedure isn't covered, etc. If this happens, you will have the name of the person you talked to and the number you called to get in touch with that person ... and you can fix the problem immediately.

Good Luck