Becca4UFGatorGirl

Hello! I am in Gainesville, Fl. trying to having surgery at UF Health Shands Hospital. I had my consult with the surgeon(Dr. Mann) Feb, 1st and have completed everything on my check list for insurance approval except my psyche consult which I have an appointment March 29th. When I went to preop for my required EGD they drew my blood for all the required labs. I was not expecting to have those labs drawn that day. I am not a heavy drinker, but I do drink moderately every other week or so. I have stopped drinking and was planning on getting those labs drawn a little close to the end of my check list to give my body time to eliminate the alcohol. So, of course I tested positive for alcohol and now the surgery coordinator is saying the bariatric team is reviewing those results, but not giving me any further information. Does anyone have any experience with this? Could I be denied all together for having the surgery or will they delay submitting for insurance approval? I am anxious because they just handed me a booklet with a list and said go do everything on this list then call us when it is all done, but they never said stop drinking that day or gave me any real direction. I work for the State of Florida and have BCBS PPO insurance. Does anyone else have this same insurance and how long did it take to get approval after they submitted your file? Any and all help would be appreciated!

Same here. I started at the end of January and it has literally been one thing after another, but they finally said my chart was complete, now I am waiting again for the bariatric team to "read over" my record to make sure it is ready to be sent to insurance. That was two weeks ago. So, still waiting. I have State of Florida BCBS. Good luck to you. It is definitely a process!

Awe, Hello, Sandra! So nice to see someone close to home on here! Thank you for the response and you are right, No more drinking after surgery. I have no problem with that at all. I had my last drink (2 glasses of wine) on Valentines day. I did tell them I drank, occasionally, which is the truth. Not sure why I said moderately. I guess, to me, a few glasses of wine every other week is a lot, but I won't miss it. I couldn't have had that much alcohol in there anyway, so hopefully it will not impact surgery, but if they feel they need to hold off I will understand. I hope your surgery was successful and you are recovering well. Do you mind if I ask what kind of insurance you have? I have State of Florida BCBS PPO and I am so nervous about when they file for approval. I have been trying to get this surgery for years, but just recently got insurance that will cover it.

Hello! I am in Gainesville, Fl. having surgery (hopefully) at UF Health Shands Hospital. I had my consult with the surgeon(Dr. Mann) Feb, 1st and have completed everything on my check list for insurance approval except my psyche consult which I have an appointment March 29th. When I went to preop for my required EGD they drew my blood for all the required labs. I was not expecting to have those labs drawn that day. I am not a heavy drinker, but I do drink moderately every other week or so. I have stopped drinking and was planning on getting those labs drawn a little close to the end of my check list to give my body time to eliminate the alcohol. So, of course I tested positive for alcohol and now the surgery coordinator is saying the bariatric team is reviewing those results, but not giving me any further information. Does anyone have any experience with this? Could I be denied all together for having the surgery or will they delay submitting for insurance approval? I am anxious because they just handed me a booklet with a list and said go do everything on this list then call us when it is all done, but they never said stop drinking that day or gave me any real direction. Any and all help would be appreciated!