ACajunAnna

Does anyone here work for AT&T and had their insurance pay for the lapband? I am a former Cingular Wireless employee and obesity surgery was excluded in 2005. Now that I am under the AT&T umbrella, I would like to know if surgery was excluded prior to 2008 (this might help in my appeal) Thanks...:thumbup:

Are you in a support group through your surgeon's office? How about getting a clothing exchange going? It may be a bit of work to get it started, but you are spending so much time shopping anyway. Of course, if the Ebay thing works out, and you can make money....go that route!

I went into Lane Bryant's a couple of weeks ago to try to buy a nice pair of jeans. BIG JOKE! The sizes are 1,2,3 ect and comes in colors. One color for big hips, another for big waist. I had NO idea which color/size to try. The only one that I was able to zip was about 18 inches too long. And the employees did not even try to help me. So, no Lane Bryant for me. I guess that I will have to stick to the elastic waist/stretch denim jeans that are sold at Wal Mart in my normal 24W size :smile2:

I like most of the books previously mentioned; I just finished the entire Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich. Very funny stuff. I have recently begun reading Stuart Woods and Lee Child. Both write novels with recurring male characters that I just cannot get enough of! Unusual for me since I normally only connect with female authors.

Welcome. You will need to wait until you get your insurance cards in the mail from UHC and then call the number on the back to find out if you are covered. I have found out that every division is different. I am bargained, in Louisiana, and we are not covered. Our contract is currently being rewritten, it has to be approved by June 30, to take effect on January 1. So far, it doesn't look like the new contract will cover any type of weight loss surgery. There is talk of increasing premiums by 540% and lowering the coverage. I've resigned myself to being self pay Good luck to you, I hope that you can have the surgery soon.

If you are on Social Security Disability and have medicaid (I think that is what it is called), you are covered for Lapband surgery. You just have to use one of their Centers of Excellence.

What I have found from this site is that with all of the different groups of employees that work for AT&T, each has its own different insurance policy. I work for Legacy Cingular, now AT&T, in Louisiana, and UHC has not covered my group for any type of weight loss treatment since 2004. I was told that it can only be changed when our union contract is renewed in 2010. Since your husband is in management and not likely to be bargained (union), he will be under a different insurance all together. In my state, the manager's insurance also does not cover WLS. Good luck and let me know if you have any questions.

About 2 years ago, I had the same thing and I was reallly worried, so my GP got me an emergency appointment with a gyno (mine had retired and left town without referring her patients) The gyno told me that since I go 3-4 months without a cycle, the blood builds up and when I finally do start bleeding, all of that must come out. The cramps were bad, but he told me that was normal as well. It was so bad that I would just stand up in the shower and watch big globs of blood and bloody mucus fall out of me (sorry for being so graphic) I had to use 2 super tampons (side by side) and a huge pad just to protect my clothes for long enough to get the the doctors office. He gave me a prescription for hormones and told me that if I went more than 2 months without a cycle, to take them for 10 days and that would start a cycle. YOU still need to see your doctor for your problem, but it is probably pretty similiar to what happened to me. Try to relax over the weekend, you will be fine.

I know that Bo Bice is out of his AI contract and just came out with a CD with the kind of music that he wanted, it is very different from his first CD. He was second to Carrie Underwood; so that was like 3 years ago. I'm thinking that the deal with AI is a 2 year contract because that would fit in Bo's case as well as in Fantasia's. It was about 2 years after her win that she began playing a role in The Color Purple. Of course, I could be 100% wrong; I'm just speculating. I was so happy with last nights results. I have wanted David Cook to win ever since he sang "Hello" And I thought that his performance with ZZ Top was unnbelievable. You could tell that he enjoyed the heck out of that.

I really dislike that little David A. Someone needs to get him some toothpicks to keep his eyes open while he sings. :iagree:He just butchered an Elvis song. Ugh!!! I hope all of the lovestruck preteens don't vote him the winner. Overall, it was not a good night. Noone really excelled. I think that Jason should go home based on tonights two songs. I'm still pulling for David Cook.

I am laughing out loud about finding a job that has insurance that covers lapband! I had the same thought; so three years ago, when I got laid off, I intentionally applied at my current company, because I had 'heard' that many of their employees had WLS paid for. Only problem is that the day that I became elgibile for insurance, the policy changed to exclude any type of treatment for obesity! I am still saving up to self pay. I worked for several years in HR and I cannot imagine an employer hiring someone who, at the job interview, asks if the insurance pays for weight loss surgery! Although it is illegal for an employer to ask about medical history, I don't think that they would hire someone knowing that probably as soon as they qualified for insurance, they would take off of work for surgery. Shadow, good luck to you, maybe things will change for you, and you will find a way to come up with the money, I will put you in my prayers!

I'm in Louisiana and will do it. We have lots of good stuff to do here....Lafayette, Louisiana. Maybe I can get one of my niece's classes to get involved as well. They both are in French Immersion programs where they are taught core subjects (math, science, social studies) in the french language by a french speaking teacher. One is in 3rd grade and the other is in 6th grade.

I think that I got fat in grade school. I remember the lunch ladies asking if I wanted two pieces of bread and then second servings after everyone else was served. I went on Atkins along with both of my parents at age 8 or 9, lost a few pounds, but gained it back quickly. My mom even enrolled me in dancing classes, hoping that it would help me to lose weight....I remained fat, and still have two left feet. The first time that I went to New Orleans, I was about 9 and we were visiting St Louis Cathedral in the French Quarter, an older lady stopped by our pew on her way out of the church and she told me that I was a beautiful child and that I should lose weight because I would have a better life if I wasn't so chubby. I just nodded and said okay. My mom is a seamstress, so she made most of my clothes, but I remember wanting some "B B" jeans when I was about 10 years old and the only pair that fit me was about 10 inches too long! The only place that had ready made clothes to fit me was the huskie section at Sears, ugh! I still cannot bring myself to shop at Sears for anything. I was teased quite a bit, got the old "fatty, fatty, two by four, can't fit through the kitchen door" but it never really bothered me much. Until 6th grade, when a boy called me "Fat Albert's wife!" I was furious and actually left school without permission and walked home. Looking back, I suppose that I was hurt and getting mad was the only way that I knew to deal with it. In high school, I hung out with the popular kids and was pretty happy, but still fat. I went on Nutria System my senior year and got down to a size 17/18 for my senior prom. My prom date was even fatter than me, I didn't have any boyfriends in school, he was a friend of a friend. When I was 22, I went on pills and lost about 70 pounds. It was such an unhealthy way to diet! I remember losing 25 pounds in 12 days because I ate nothing but diet pills and orange juice during that time. That got me down to my lowest weight, about 170 and I was a size 16. That was 20 years ago and I have remained on an up and down roller coaster (mostly up) I have never been married, have had boyfriends, but not had any long term relationships. I've never been pregnant and now it is too late to have children. I rarely go out anymore and have become a real couch potato. YES, I too wonder what life would have been like for me had I listened to the lady in the church. My insurance has an exclusion for WLS, so I am trying to save as much as I can to pay for this surgery. I am so ready to get this done and begin losing weight and start feeling good about myself.

I also have severe psoriasis and was worried about not being able to have the surgery, but I spoke to the mother of a friend of mine. She has psoriasis and RA and got banded about 6 months ago. She did have to stop taking Methotraxate and her shots of Enbrel 10 days before and 10 days after surgery and ended up having a bad break out, but all is better now. I am going to try to schedule my surgery during the summer, which is when my psoriasis is often times in control, so that if I have a flare up from being off of Enbrel, it won't be unbearable. Hopefully losing weight will keep the psoriasis at bay and I can stop the Enbrel and the topical steroids for good!!!! Good luck to you.

Go Ali.....lost 99 pounds!!!! Is it just me, or does anyone else feeling as if there is some chemistry between Ali and Mark? He called her "hot" on the last show and I'm getting vibes again tonight. Wow.....can you believe these girls....Kelli just lost 13!!!!!!!:thumbup::thumbup:

"oh and dont forget that what you pay out of your pocket is a tax deduction! thats something to think about." Yes, that is also something to take into consideration. Before filing my taxes this year, I itemized my deductions and added $15,000 of medical expenses to see the difference in my refund. I would have gotten about $2000 more refunded.

They were full insurance plans, but since I already have insurance through my employer, the policy would have been secondary, or supplement what mine did not pay. They were also hospitalization policies only. The policies for full coverage which include doctor visits and prescriptons were very very expensive and still covered only 75% of the surgery after a 12 month waiting period. You live in the Dallas area, have you looked into that doctor in Dallas that was offering the $9000 special? I read that thread a couple of months ago somewhere on this site. Not sure of his name.

I feel your pain, Kimmie. I also work for a huge company (AT&T) and am insured with UHC with an exclusion for any type of weight loss surgery. I have researched getting a supplemental hospitalization policy and spoke to several companies. The bottom line is that self pay will be the best way to go. But here is the breakdown.... All of the semi-affordable policies that I found have a 12 month waiting period (about $300/month x 12 = $3600) The policy will only pay for 75% of the surgery (average cost for insurance pay at my surgery center for lapband is $40,000. 25% of 40,000 = $10,000) That is a total of $13,600, plus fees for aftercare and fills, and I would have to wait a year to have the surgery. Self pay is $13,365 which includes fills and after care for 1 year. That is the way that I am going to go as soon as I can round up the funds, I can charge $6500 on Care Credit and pay monthly on that, so I just need to find the other half. If you have decent credit, you can probably get a loan for the entire amount (my credit sux) Congrats on quitting smoking. I quit 7 years ago and it was the best thing that I could have ever done. If only getting this weight off were so easy. Good luck.

I am also in Louisiana and have an exclusion in my policy that will not pay. I called State Farm to see about getting a supplemental health insurance policy that would cover the surgery. Wow...it is very expensive with a high deductible. The bottom line is that I will have to be self pay. My doctor charges about $15,000 with a year of aftercare included. The supplemental insurance would have had a $5000 deductible plus I would have paid 30% of the cost of the surgery. Sounds like less? It is not; because the charge for insurance companies is not $15,000, it is something like $40,000...so my out of pocket would be more than $15000, not to mention the premiums and the fills and appointments for the first year. I'm looking into some finance options. In fact, I used to work for the state and still have some money in Lasers that I will draw out and use for a portion of my surgery. Good luck to you.

I have United Health Care and there is an exclusion in our policy for any treatment for obesity. I am waiting for the rejection letter so that I can file an appeal. The appeal is not likely to be successful, so I am trying to figure out some self pay options. My doctor charges about $15,000 and that includes all visits for one year after surgery. My question is for you accountants and tax people. I make under $30k per year and am single with no dependents. Can I claim the cost of this surgery on my taxes? And how will that affect my refund? What if I opt for the Mexico surgery that will cost less but have some travel expenses....are those deductible? Thanks for any input that you might have on this subject. This forum really inspires me!

Go to WhyWeight.com- Weight Loss Surgery in Louisiana - Home They do wls throughout south Louisiana. If you will be in Rayne, the doctors in Lafayette will be much closer than going to New Orleans. I have heard really good things about Doctors Chu and Stevens and I plan on using one of them to do my Lap Band. Good luck with your surgery. PM me when you get to Louisiana and perhaps we can meet...I am in Lafayette.

Since I have been lurking here for about a month, I have finally decided to come out of the closet! I am so inspired by all of the stories of success and especially by the support that you give each other to overcome any stumbling blocks. I will consider myself very lucky if I become a member of this forum. After reading and researching for months, Lap Band surgery is definately something that I want to do; but I have to first win the battle with my employer and United Health Care. I work for a huge company (largest telecom company in the United States) and my benefits center tells me that UHC does not cover weight loss surgery. But UHC tells me that they just administer the plan that my employer has chosen, which specifically excludes WLS. Even though I have not see a surgeon or atended a seminar; after speaking to me on the phone, the patient coordinator in the surgeon's office sent in a request to UHC. Hopefully, I will get a denial soon and can hire an attorney to file an appeal. UHC told me that the appeal goes directly to my employer who will make the decision and then direct UHC to either pay or reject the claim. Does anyone here know if I have any kind of chance of getting this paid? BTW, I am 42 years old, 5'4" and 286 lbs. Have been overweight all of my life. I haven't been under 200 lbs in over 20 years.