Back again... questions for self payers.

The last I heard, the best self-pay rates in the US were Dr. Peters in PA and Dr. Stewart in Texas. (Both around the neighborhood of $19-20,000ish, I believe.)  They are listed on DS Facts and if you call I'm sure you could get a quote.

Good luck!

Oh thank you! That is good information to have. I know I had this information once before, but I havent been on here in over a year  because I was focused on my pregnancy. I will look into them more! :) Its probably an option my husband would be more happy with... even though a trip to mexico would be fun! lol

Stateside, I think Dr. Peters is about $18-19k and I don't recall anyone lower. But, you'll want to be sure that any possible complications are covered if, like me, you end up in the hospital for an extra 5 days and undergo a second surgery. Most insurances won't cover that (but, check) so make sure it is covered under the surgeon's self-pay rates--including hospital/anesthesiology, etc.-- or even a minor complication could end up costing you a bundle extra.

Post op, you'll have to make sure that your labs are coded as Malabsorption syndrome and nothing at all to do with bariatric anything and you shouldn't have a problem with them being paid.

Dr. Ungson trained under the highly renowned Dr. Baltasar in Spain. He is (or was) associated in some way with Baylor in TX and he taught at USC, I believe. Check him out on www.dsfacts.com. As with any surgeon, do your research for safety as well as peace of mind for your loved ones.

I promise you, Dr. Ungson is NOT spending his weekends doing tattoos on a street corner in Tijuana.

LOL about the tattoos!! Thats a bummer though.. figured while he was doing my surgery I could get another tat while I was at it! ;) lol

Maybe if you asked nicely and batted your eyes...

I just mentioned that because I suspect that that is the first impression that comes to mind when someone hears "surgery" and "Mexico" in the same breath for the first time.

I am sure thats what my husband is thinking... and I know he only wants what is best for me.

When it comes to going to mexico for surgery, how does that all work exactly? How do you get in touch with the surgeon to schedual your surgery? How long do you usually have to wait? How long does it take to get a passport to make it happen? Those are details I am completely ignorent about.

I handled all my communication with Dr. Ungson via email. Worked out best for me because of the time zone difference and because I loathe talking on the phone. Plus, I could print out the emails for myself and forward them to whoever I wanted. But, you can use the phone, too.

He sent me a list of pre-op tests (blood work and a chest x-ray) he wanted and a questionaire for my pcp regarding my general health. Due to an ongoing health concern he requested several other records as well. I got copies from my docs, scanned them, and emailed them myself just to keep things simple.

Once he approved me, he had an opening only two weeks away. That didn't work for me because of an already planned family vacation so I scheduled my DS for two weeks after my vacation.

I already had a passport. I think they only take about 8 weeks, but I would double check that in case they have a backlog of applications. They might even take less time. You fill out a form you get at the post office. Get an instant passort photo from Walgreen's or somewhere for $7.95 or something, return the passport form to the post office to sign in front of them and they ship it out. You get your passport in the mail when it is ready. It really isn't difficult. I still use it as my ID even when traveling domestically because it gets you through security a little faster. Passports are not as easy to counterfeit as drivers' licenses and they spend less time scrutinizing them in my experience.

Dr. Ungson will tell you how long to schedule your stay and you book your flights. You'll probably check into the hospital the day before your surgery. Someone will pick you up at the airport when you arrive and take you to the hospital. They checked me in, took some blood and another chest x-ray, and brought me to my room.

It was a remarkably easy, stress-free process.

did you have to pay for the blood work and xrays here int he states out of pocket as well?

Yes, but I didn't have insurance, either. I had the option of waiting to get it done in MX for far less, but as I mentioned, I had some preexisting health concerns and I didn't want to get all the way down there only to have them find something that would cancel my surgery.

My initial image was of a back room in a bar in Tijuana, where for antiseptic they use left-over tequila from the bar glasses, and the surgeon cuts you open with a rusty knife that says "Pepe" on the handle.

I'm told Ungson's operation is a bit different from that, but I haven't seen it for myself.