brown_eyed_girl

What I like to work out to is old fashioned Richard Simmons Sweatin to the Oldies. I found it on DVD and use it a couple of times a week. For me, it is easy to keep up with and I like the music.

I'm a nurse in Indiana and deal a lot with Medicaid, HIP, etc. a lot. HIP 2.0 (HIP Plus) does cover bariatric surgery. They may have specific requirements (certain BMI, 6 month pre-op classes, etc) before they will approve you for surgery. HIP (HIP Basic) does not cover bariatric surgery. You should be able to call the 1-800 # customer service # on your card and speak to someone to get the specifics. Your surgeon's office should have a benefit specialist that can navigate the process for you too.

So far I haven't been asked to lose any weight. I was just told that my surgeon requires that I don't gain weight before my surgery. During my nutrition classes, the dietitian stated that depending on how much weight I do or don't lose pre-op will determine the likelihood of me being successful after surgery.

I am a couple of months into the process. I went to an information session and met with the surgeon 11/2015. I found out that my insurance requires that I follow a Dr. approved diet plan for 6 consecutive months (I have to go 2x a month). The hospital where I am having the surgery is a Bariatric Center of Excellence and all of the surgeons, Dr.'s and nutritionists have offices right next to each other and all work together. Once a month I will meet with the Dr. who runs the program and then 2 weeks later I will have a class to attend where a nutritionist/dietitian talks to us about various different things. I have my 2 visits for December completed and I had my class yesterday and will meet with the Dr. on the 19th. I also had to meet with a psychologist and they want me to attend a support group at least once in my area. Fingers crossed that everything goes smoothly from here on out.