Lap Banders

Long story short....(is that possible)? LOL Ok. I have poured hours into this web-site.... I Love IT ! I have been trying to get my Lap Band for 6 years (since it first became avail in the US) In 2002 I tried with 2 different insurances and 2 different Dr.'s. I recently visited Dr Mortons obesity clinic at Baptist. I was told right there on the spot- I was approved for surgery !!! Of course I have to go through all the hoops of pshc eval exc exc.... However- I am reading a lot of profiles where people start recieving large bills long after the surgery. Have any of you exper/ this. If so how do I avoid it? The last thing hubby and I need are more bills -TEE-HEE   There is one kind lady on here that has 14,000.00 in bills that her insurance refuses to pay! YIKES

Make sure you have the approval letter from your insurance company in your hand before you schedule your surgery date. Usually, you have to have the psyc eval before your paperwork is submitted to insurance.  What they may have told you is that you are a good candidate for surgery and he is accepting you as a possible patient. That is what I was told at my first meeting with Dr. Spaw.  I met Dr. Morton last week when I was sick with a stomach/intestinal virus. I liked him. He was very easy to talk to and very thorough. He even told me to follow up with his nurse the next day to let him know how I was feeling.

I probably did misunderstand. I was in total aww after she told me they called my insurance company and they cover my surgery. HeHE I had an hr drive back home and dont remember any of it I was so excited :)   Thanks for the response.  I have made a mental note.... Approved papers in hand :) Check /

I do not mean to bust your bubble, but what they meant when they told you that your insurance company covered your surgery, probably meant that it is a part of your medical coverage, but approval is a different story.  I would suggest calling the insurance company yourself to see what the requirements are to be approved for surgery, then start the approval process.  However, like Susan said, do not schedule a date until you have the approval papers in your hand. Good Luck, it is worth it!! Shelia

I ditto the other respondents.  Don't rely on the medical practice - make sure that you have a copy of the approval letter and it states that it is for adjustable gastric banding.  My husband's insurance does not cover bariatric surgery so I waited until the following year for open season for insurance with my employer and fortunately one of the insurance companies I had to choose from covered the lap band.  However, the insurance company's first approval letter approved me for gastric bypass and then when they corrected that mistake they sent it to the wrong surgeon.  The 14,000 is just for the surgery.  You want to ensure that your insurance company pays for future medical expenses with the lap band - which if they cover it they should as the only way the band works is to have it adjusted as needed.  Both my husband and I were banded and I had to make several calls at the beginning as I don't think my insurance company had dealt with gastric banding medical codes that often (same with my surgeon's billing office).