Question:
HAS ANYONE HAD EXPERIENCES DEALING WITH CIGNA HMO?
— LEE R. (posted on July 11, 2002)
July 11, 2002
I, too, have CIGNA HMO and have heard nothing but bad things about them as
far as approval goes. I went to my surgeon's pre-op support group and the
surgeon who was heading the group said they were a real pain to deal with
and I may want to think about changing my insurance... GREAT :-(!!
— [Deactivated Member]
July 11, 2002
I have Cinga HMO and they were great! Approved quickly at first request.
In fact, the surgeon's office said, "Oh, Cigna's been really good
about this lately." They were also extremely helpful when I called to
"check the status" of the request - which I only did once and she
gave me the approval number and said it had been sent to the surgeon!
— jen41766
July 11, 2002
I had nightmares with CIGNA. I went for my original consultation in
January and the surgeon warned me that they would go ahead and submit my
paperwork, but I would probably be denied because Cigna was such a stickler
for the 12 weeks physician supervised diet in the past year. I went to my
primary care physician the same week and told her what he had said and we
started a 1600 calorie a day diet that week. She kept meticulous notes
over the 12 weeks and sure enough in mid-March, I got my denial. The 12
weeks was up April 4, so I went and got copies of her notes and wrote a
scathing letter to go with it asking for a Level 1 Appeal because of my
medical problems. At the same time I found out the e-mail naming standard
for Cigna and who the district medical director was and sent letters of
complaint to him. I also went and got the corporate address of Cigna and
sent the same scathing letter to the CEO. I got my approval at the end of
May. I felt like I'd been through a war and I hope it's all going to be
worth it. My surgery is scheduled for August 15.
— Cathy S.
July 11, 2002
I was told at the surgeons office that Cigna will not approve unless you
have *PROOF* of a supervised weight loss program w/ weekly weigh-ins for 12
weeks and in the last 12 months. Cigna will not bend on this one. I was
denied twice so now I'm back in Weight Watchers (again). Good luck to you
and keep the Faith.
— Siddy I.
July 11, 2002
I have Cigna HMO and after reading all the "war stories", was
prepared for a long, drawn out battle. Imagine my surprise when I was
approved on the first try. I have had the same PCP for the last 14 years,
and I did have copies of pages of my chart from my PCP, a letter from my
PCP and 3 co-morbidities: diabetes, hypertension, and high cholesterol.
The letter from the PCP probably did the trick. He documented when each of
my co-morbidities surfaced, the fact that I have been obese the entire 14
years he has known me, and all the different diets he and I had worked on
over the years. Good luck and best wishes.
— Chris S.
July 12, 2002
YOU WOULD NO EVEN BELEIVE THE HELL THAT THEY PUT ME THROUGH. I THINK THEY
PRIDE THEIRSELVES WITH THE BEST EVASION TACTICS IN THE INDUSTRY. BE
PREPARED TO GET DIRTY. I GOT LUCKY AND CHANGED TO MY HUSBAND'S INSURANCE
WHICH ACCORDING TO MY SURGEON'S OFFICE, IS THE BEST OUT THERE (UNITED
HEALTHCARE). READ MY PROFILE IF YOU WANT MORE INFO. GOOD LUCK!!! 8)
— Laurie V.
July 12, 2002
I have CIGNA HMO and was approved in about 1 1/2 months. My PCP was a
little slow in getting chart info to them, and that held up the decision.
The only other thing they asked from me was a list of diets, how much
weight I'd lost on each and why I stopped the diets (???). It had to be in
my own handwriting and signed, even though my surgeon provided this info to
them. Over all CIGNA was very good to me and I had no problems. Good
Luck!
— Michaele S.
July 12, 2002
Hi Lee! I have Cigna HMO and had a hard time getting approval because I
didn't have a doctor supervised diet I was denied twice. On my last appeal
letter I sent colored copies of photos of me all through my life showing I
had always been obese and wrote a letter begging not to be made to go on
yet another failed attempt and sent it certified mail so I would know for
sure they received it. They were to have 30 days to respond to me someone
had signed for my letter on June 26th 2001 by Aug 1 2001 noone had
contacted me so I called and the rep that I talked to called the St. Louis
office for me St. Louis called me on a Tue. and said they were setting up a
hearing for me and would contact me with a date that Thur out of the blue
they called me at work and said I was approved. I had my surgery Jan 10th
2002 and have lost 72lbs.I wish you much luck with your approval don't give
up without a fight.
— POOBEAR
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