ladyB

I switched doctors three times before I got banded. I have Cigna and once they approved me I went to see one dr and did not like the fact that after the exam he tells me that I MUST pay 300 out of pocket expense for a class that is mandatory before he submits my paper work. Then I called Cigna, they said fine go somewhere else. I made an appointment with another Dr and that turned out to be further in distance than I thought so I decided against them. The last Dr was in a good location and had no surprises what so ever. The dr I did decide to go with actually changed my appointment date twice. That was a concern for Cigna since they needed to issue a new authorization number. I hope this helps. good luck and much success.

Cigna paid for my lapband. What exactly do you need to know regarding WLS with Cigna? I have been through a great deal with them, so please feel free to ask away. I am not an expect, but it took me almost 6 months to get approved. I know with my Cigna policy I had to be in Center of Excellence. This was half of the battle as I was not aware of this. So if you are just starting out, clarify if you will need to be in center of excellence. Hope this helps. I live in Grand Prairie Texas. Banded on July 21st .....started out at 207 and down to 180. I had my surgery at UT Southwestern.

Hello, I understand your concern. I am 5'2 and was at 200 lbs. I had my surgery on July 21st and used True Results in the HEB area. My BMI just made it and I also was diagnosed with high blood pressure. I am 44. I had some real issues getting approved via Cigna, but True Results helped a great deal with my delay. One reason I was not approved quickly was since my BMI was under 40 I HAD to have co-morbid factors. Well high blood pressure was a factor, but it needed to be unmanageable. True results did not document that nor did they document any co morbid issues with me. After 6 months of dealing with them, I had DR Carters office in Arlington ask for my paper work from True Results....once they got them they submitted it to Cigna themselves only to discover that I needed to be in a center of excellence. Dr. Carter is amazing but he is not in a center of excellence. I finally got my surgery done at UT Southwestern. My concern was the same as yours. I also has gestational diabetes and was concerned with it going full blown since I was tipping the scale at 200. I am proud that I took the proactive alternative and had the surgery. I actually started a year ago with this process and I was 200lbs. But due to all the delays, dr appointments and calls to Cigna i gain 7 more pounds. I am now at 180 and it has just been a month for me. I am on my way to a healthier me and so are you. ps. I plan on going with Dr carter as I live closer to him, but he makes you wait 3 months for a fill. UT South Western makes you wait 5 to 6 weeks after surgery....so what works best for you. PPS I have known Dr Carter years before he was doing lap band. He did surgery on my husband to remove fibroids. I went to see him about the lap band and he did recall my husband....he was just as and if not NICER than he was 10 years ago. He is WONDERFUL! Much luck and blessings!

sorry to hear that you may need to push back your date. I would also like to know what the fee is for as well. I went to one dr in dallas and he tried to hit me with a fee for a nutrition class....it was 300 bucks. I was a little put off by this. I know that something will work out for you..stay positive and it will happen...

Hello my sistah.....I live in grand prairie and I am scheduled for my lap band on July 21st at 8:30 at UT southwestern. I am starting my pre-op today and it has been rough...I am nervous ...but hanging in there...I just wish the weeks would fly by..any input on what to expect.... Hey UT southwestern keeps you over night..

Try dr cater in Arlington Texas.( I dont have his number on hand..sorry) He does fills if he was not the one that did your lapband. He is wonderful and his staff is great. Good Luck!

I was approved for the lap band last month. I have Cigna and it took months for me to get approved. The hold up was the "center of excellence". I found a dr in the dfw area that was a center of excellence. I made an appointment with them asap. They had all my paper work before I even got there..all they needed was an approval code to schedule me for surgery. I went to the appointment and was seen by the dr for a few minutes then a nurse (at least I think she was a nurse). She spoke to me a few more minutes and then told me that she would be submitting my paper work asap. This dr did NOT require me to lose ten pounds or do an pre-op diet. When I went to pay for my visit I gave my credit card. The nursereceptinist then stated that I needed to attend a class and the fee would be 300 dollars. I asked what was it for and she said it was for 8 hours for two days (I think). I asked her if it was Cigna approved and she said no. I asked if it was at a hospital site and she said no. I then asked what it did entail. She said it was quite a bit of information on what to expect from the lap band. How to eat and what to expect. So I asked why was I not told about this as none of the other facilities have this fee. She said she did not know. I was a little put off by this. IF your going to spend 300 bucks and it is MANDATORY ( as she stated it was) YOU should be told this before you get there and not afterwards. There are about 5 to 7 center of excellence in the DFW area. None of them charge this fee. I called the dr office the next morning and canceled my surgery with them. I called Ut southwestern and they assured me that they do not charge a fee. I called the dr office back that wanted the 300.00 fee and suggested that they advise people that there is such a fee. The receptionist said that she would do so going forward, but I did not feel comfortable going with this dr. You gotta know that this a significant amount of money and if is so very important why does Cigna or any health care providers pay for it? I was uneasy about it and when I went to UT southwestern, they did everything right there on the spot. Everything is included in my surgery ....no fees for paper work or nutrition.