Eydiebug

When was the last time that you checked with BCBS? They have made some changes to their policies, and many are now covering VSG. I have BCBS of TX, and when I checked back in June '10, they only covered gastric banding and RnY. But, as of July 1, 2010, they now cover all of the surgeries, including the sleeve. Try giving them a call, if you haven't already. Eydie :thumbup:

Hi Emma, and welcome from another "newbie". Looks like we've found a great place to come for advice and support. I wish you all the best with your surgery. I'm sure you're gonna do just fine. Eydie:thumbup1:

Thanks Mary, I sure will! I'm really looking forward to getting this rolling and getting healthier. Eydie

Happy Saturday to everyone. I just found this site, and it seems pretty cool. Although I am new to THIS website, I am not new however to the whole WLS roller coaster. I have been researching and trying to have surgery for about 15 years. My first go 'round was trying to have the old VBG back in '95. I fit all the criteria, but my PCP at the time felt WLS was still experimental. Alas, no surgery. I've spent the years since then working for companies that had exclusions to WLS in their policy. I'm now working for a company that covers the surgery, and just added VSG to the list of covered surgeries on 7/1/2010. Woooo Hoooo!!! I've already attended the mandatory seminar, had the consult with my chosen surgeon, and will go for my psych evaluation and visit with the dietician this Monday. I'm really excited to finally be on my way to having this done. I'm also excited to continue to learn everything I can about this surgery. Eydie :001_tongue:

I've also corresponded with Susan, his patient coordinator. He's very reasonably priced, and since I live in San Antonio, TX, I really wouldn't need the hotel room or anything. He seems to be very highly qualified, and his patients speak very highly of him. His lapband pricing is well below others that I've researched, and since I have to pay for this myself, that's probably the route I'll go.

Hi, I saw your post about SA docs, and thought I'd say "hi". My husband and I are also looking into having lapband surgery, so we're doing research also. I'd be glad to share whatever info I can find with you. Edie

Thanks ClaraMae and Andisgt for your replies. I'm very excited and rejuvenated about the surgery again. I too was so disappointed with the denial that I stopped looking at anything that had to do with WLS. Now with hubby on board, we're ready to go. Clara-congrats on your losing 21lbs already!! That's awesome!! Andisgt-good luck with your scheduled surgery. If all goes well, we should be on about the same time frame for surgery. Well it's time to finish up some laundry:washing: before turning in. Have a wonderful evening, and thanks again for your kind words and responses.

Hi Everyone, I'm very excited to have found this great community. My name is Edie, and I've been researching WLS on and off for many years. I was on the road to surgery, had all the tests and such, and THEN found out that my insurance had an exclusion. Although I had checked it out before I started everything, several of the people at BCBS told me that if it was considered to be "medically necessary" it would be approved. It wasn't until my doctor sent in the final paperwork that I was told that under no circumstances was it allowed. Anyway, that made me mad enough that I joined Weight Watchers back in 2004 and lost 97 lbs in about 10 months. I was able to keep that off for about 6 months, then after my mother's passing and a brief separation from my husband I started to slowly gain the weight back. So here I am again, and this time hubby is interested in having the surgery also. My insurance still doesn't cover WLS, so we will be paying for the surgeries ourselves. Whew! I think that covers it all....lol. Again, I'm glad to have found this community, and I can't wait to learn everything I can about the lapband. Edie