6 month supervised diet

I'm super confused on this. I have read so many posts from people who say they literally go in,  get weighed and go home once a month for 6 months. This does not seem like a supervised diet to me. I do have 6 months of consecutive weigh ins from various appointments within the last 12 months and every one of them has my weight and/or my BMI and mentions obesity. the very first month the doctor added detailed notes about my exercise and diet regimen. Could this not count as six months history? Mao clinic is saying my insurance won't accept it but it seems like many other people have been approved On less?

It is so dependent on your individual insurance.  I didn't have any pre-op diet requirement at all, for example.  

I don't see why those weigh ins wouldn't count...The best people to ask about this would be the coordinators at your surgeons office. They send in papers for approval constantly and know what gets approved and what doesn't. They might have a form or a best accepted format that you can get your doctor to fill out with the weights from your visits. Best of luck :)

This is just a guess, but maybe the insurance company will only accept the 6-month supervised weight loss from the surgeon (or surgeon's office/weight loss center) and not the PCP. I have been seeing my PCP for a couple of years, I get weighed and she tells me I am overweight. But I don't think that BCBS MI would approve my surgery if the PCP submitted the paperwork.

Also, my weight loss center told me that BCBS MI requires 6 consecutive months supervised and if I miss an appointment or don't have an appointment scheduled each of the 6 months, I have to start all over again!

Dawn.....I have BCBS of  ILLINOIS but I have no waiting period so u may want to call them. I know each plan is different but this can be the difference having it done in this plan year or waiting 6 months and risk a change in coverage.

Hi AngelGirl. I started my 6-month requirement in December, so I am good to go. Got approved the same day my weight loss clinic submitted. Have my pre-surgey meeting on 9/5 and surgery 9/23.

My NUT called to reschedule my 4th appointment. Then about a week before the rescheduled date, the office manager called to reschedule. The day before that day, I called to verify that the appointment was a go, and the office manager kind of jumped on me and told me that I "need to get in here for the 4th appointment or you will have to start the program over again". I was livid because they are the ones who kept reacheduling. In the end, it has all worked out though.

What you described WOULD have worked for my insurer, especially if the primary care physician/doctor specifically mentions discussing weight loss with you. For one of my visits, my PCP did not include in the notes that we'd discussed weight loss (even though we had), so I asked to please amend the notes to reflect everything. The PCP did make the change, and the insurance accepted it.

I have BCBS w/o a 6th month diet. My wls clinic kept insisting I needed a 6 month supervised diet. I gave up until a preop appointment meeting where it was pointed out my 6 mos needed to be done with a dr vs a nut. When I again challenged the requirement, they finally they realized their error, but still made me do 2 months.

All insurance are totaly diffrent I personally have bcbs with my company and they wouldn't cover a single thing ... yet I also have bcbs of Illinois with my hubby and the cover 100% with out any waiting period. .. I saw my surgeon in march sleeved on 4/8 ... so everyone of them differ for the other!!! Best of luck to you!!! :-)

♡ Kelly

My cynical view is that the insurance companies that require the 6 month supervised diet (AKA from a nutritionist or surgeon's office) do so in the hopes that you get sick of it and don't pursue surgery.  A less cynical person would say that they want you to talk to a bariatric nutritionist monthly to prepare the skills you'll need to be successful once you have the surgery.