fatBgone

Dr. Trace Curry in Cincinnati. www.thebanddoctor.com. People travel from all over the country to see him.

I didn't mean to discourage you! Just relaying my story, which sucks!!! Anyway if you are denied, make sure you look at your options for self pay. Many people on this site went to Mexico for surgery because of cost and I know most doctors offer CareCredit which allows you to finance the cost.

Hi peacequeen, I started out like you, I went in to inquiry about lapband surgery. I was convinced a lap band was the way to go for me, I though it was less invasive and safer. I went through about 11 months of insurance appeals and ultimately was denied in Jan of this year. So I decided I was going to self pay. When I started this process last year, sleeve wasn't an option because my insurance didn't cover it anyway so I didn't pay any attention to sleeve info. When I went back to consult with the Dr about self paying for a lap band. I asked him about the sleeve, I thought since I'm self paying its an option and I owe it to myself to consider all options. My doctor has a lap band, which is one of the main reasons I was comfortable with the band and with the doctor, I thought that he understand the lap band. He said he has been doing many sleeve surgeries and I quote, "our sleeve patients are our happiest patients because the weight comes off faster and they have no hungry feelings." So at that point I decide I needed to do some research and I changed my mind to have the sleeve. My surgery is April 11. I know its a hard decision but you need to decide the best choice for you. I talked to a woman who works in my doctor's office who has a band and asked her why that was her choice. She is in her twenties and newly married and explained that she wants to have children and felt the band was best for that. Because she have the Fluid removed so that she had the least amount of restriction when she would be eating for two. So each person needs to look at what they need for their life. Hope this helps. Good luck!

What is the price difference in Mexico?

Hi StacyS, unfortunately I was denied. I started my process last year around Feb, I went through the medically supervised diet for 3 months, which is what my insurance requires. My BMI is between 35-40 and I do have 2 comorbidities (high blood pressure and cholesturol) Even with that, my insurance denied me. Its actually not the insurance but my employer who sets the limit as to what will be accepted for this type of surgery and they are very strict on the BMI of 40. I was pursueing a lap band at the time and even worked with Obesity Law and they appealed my denial. It took from May, 2010 - Jan 2011 to go through all the appeals and ultimately I was still denied. I decided to move forward and self pay so here I am. Waiting on Apr 11! I had all my medical records for the last 5 years showing BMI of at least 35 and all the medication for HBP and cholesturol, plus a reccommendation letter from my regular doctor saying I would benefit from a lap band but didn't matter. Good luck to you. Hopefully you will have a better outcome.

Well I saw your post and decide I should join this forum. So this is my first post and my surgery date is April 11 too!!!! I can't believe how many people are doing this in April. I'm excited and scared all at the same time. Insurance isn't covering mine so I'm also nervous about the amount of money I'm spending on me. But the decision is made and I'm going for it! Good luck to all of us.