TracyinKS

Hope you get an April Date!!!!!!!!!!!!

woooooooooooooooohooooooooooooooooo congrats on getting a date!

Don't beat yourself up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We are ALL emotional eaters!

got it and approved it!

check out the complications forum... with all that are here.. you WILL get some advice

Ahhhh grasshopper..... try and take a deep breath! We've all been there.

First, find out why they don't cover it and appeal. To answer your question..... the cost for self pay varies greatly. Lots of People on here ask this question when they are first starting out. My best advice would be for you to read, read, read this entire site... do a search for SELF PAY. Bascially in the United States, the lowest price I've heard is $9500 by Dr. K in Denver, other than that the prices go from AROUND 13.5K to 23K LOTS and I mean YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MANY actually go to Mexico for this... do a search for Mexico and you will find a TON of info, prices are less than 10K for everything including lodging and transport to and from airport.. (I had no idea this was a viable option when I first ventured onto this site) When you call around to your local places ask these questions: 1. How much is your self pay price? 2. What does that include? Fills, Aftercare, Dr., Hospital, pretests, anestheisa 3. How often to they fill (every 4 weeks if needed) 4. Do they charge for Unfils 5. Who pays if your port flips or you have a complication? 6. Do they do fills for people who weren't banded there... (i.e. Mexican bands, Canadian Bands, or even if they just moved to the area) IF insurance wasn't paying for mine, I would either go to Dr. K in Denver or the Tallgrass surgical center in Topeka Kansas.. (but that is because I live in KC and a flight to Denver is cheap and Topeka is only an hour's drive) OK... now the other options if you are self paying....... Financing a. Refinance your home b. or Take out a HELOC (2nd) c. 401K loan d. Medical Credit Card like CareCredit or Capital One Credit e. Credit card or multiple credit cards (especially if you can get the zero percent interest rate) f. Win Lottery......... LOL Hope this helps!

Tracy you're my pal. Maybe one day we can meet! That would be great.... LBT Bash!!!! all zero calorie beverages and healthy finger foods! Crystal Light and Vodka = Zero Carbs and Zero Carbonation RIGHT???? Oh and a friend of mine, used CareCredit for her tummy tuck and boob reduction........... she had no problem! (she had the RNY two years ago and lost 110lbs) More now that she had her boobs reduced.. LOL

WOW Mirissa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sounds like you are doing great! timeforachange: YOUR TIME IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER! wooohooo!

I was going to say the same as Wheets, and Sissy....... Your turtle has come out of his shell, and the shell has gotten smaller!

Tammy: I feel your pain.. I am right now almost at full pregnancy weight and it SUCKS! I have NOT been good on my goal.. I keep having my last supper.. I think I may try and do what your doing... 2 lc protein shakes and one low carb meal....... something has got to give.. I refuse to buy a bigger pair of pants!

That is the best NSV I could ever imagine!!!!!!!! being at peace with yourself and food! CONGRATS!

Seems like insurance gets billed at about double the cost of self pay... WHY? Because its a game.

CONGRATS!!!!!!! I'll add you to the list!

:cake:KindredSpirit - 02/21 :cake:Jean (Freeksky) - 2/21 :cake:Silry - 02/21

Keluliana: I can so relate.. I had really hoped to have mine in January! (But it was a dream!) LOL Now that we are almost in March... April doesn't seem so far away. Have a great day

CONGRATS SARA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I will add you to the April list!

I've copied this from an old post: i copied this info from another site... it is dated in 2003, but hey if the websites still work well then all the better! LOL Dr. Rodriguez - Accuna - $6500 (does not include air, transportation into Mexico, or hotel) JoseBand.com This doctor is very popular with his patients. He operates our of a smaller hospital. You fly into San Antonio and then travel to Accuna. One of Dr. Rodriguez's former patients will transport you for a fee. While Dr. Rodriguez was the least expensive surgeon I found, the flight to San Antonio was more expensive for me than to San Diego, and I was worried about the distance from any state of the art medical facilities and the logistics of traveling the significant distance from San Antonio to Accuna. You cannot take a rented car across the border. Dr. Rumbaut - Monterey - about $10000 LAP-BAND: Dr. R. Rumbaut Diaz Roberto Rumbaut Diaz (Dr. Rumbaut) was one of the surgeons selected by Inamed for its pre-US clinical trials. The results of his work--and the work of others in Europe--were what allowed the LapBand to be introduced to the US. I know he has placed over 1500 LapBands--I think more than all the Tijuana surgeons combined. The April 2003 edition of Obesity Surgery contains an article of the experiences of over 100 of his surgery patients who received follow-up in the US. Patient communication with Doctor Rumbaut is no problem, as he attended junior high school in Akron, Ohio, is completely fluent in English, and he answers his cell phone himself. Last I checked, his fee was $7500 and the hospital fee was about $2500. If the patient prefers, Doctor Rumbaut will cover the his fees and hospital costs for a flat fee of $10,000. Dr. Rumbaut is one of Inamed's proctor surgeons, supervising the work of those performing their first few LapBand placements. Dr. Sanchez - Monterey - about $10000 BeLighter.com Dr. Sanchez comes highly recommended and operates out of a nice hospital. Dr. Kuri - Tijuana - $8500 (does not include air and hotel) LapBandSurgery.com You fly into San Diego, and he will transport you to and from Tijuana. The hotel he recommends is one block from the hospital and charges $65 per night when booked through Dr. Kuri. He works out of a small older hospital which some Americans find disconcerting, but standards of cleanliness are said to be on par with those we expect in America. I have heard no real complaints about Dr. Kuri, but I cannot speak to my own experience as my surgery is scheduled in one week. All fills are free for his patients, though there is a $50 fee for flouro. Dr. Ortiz & Dr. Lopez - Tijuana - $10,000 (does not include air) obesitycontrolcenter.com These doctors practice together and operate out of a fancier hospital than Dr. Kuri. Their price includes transportation to and from the San Diego airport as well as hotel in what is described as a five star resort. I have not read any complaints about these doctors. Dr. Joya - Puerto Valletta - $9000 (inclusive) - DrJoya.com I have rarely seen this doctor discussed, so you may want to check into how many bands he has actually placed. I have seen some discussion about dissatisfaction with one of his employees and what was actually included in the inclusive price, but no complaints about the doctor himself. dr. Ponce de leon - Tijuana - obesity.com Dr. Robles - Nogales - grshealthy@hotmail.com Dr. Diaz - Mexico City Dr. Aguirre - Ensenda - aaguirre@microsol.com.mx Dr. Gonzalez - Tijuana Dr. Verbonnen- Tijuana Dr. Isidro Vera - Tijuana - jisidrovera@aol.com Dr. Castillo - Irapuato - arturocardiel@yahoo.com.mx Dr. de la Garza - Monterrey - ObesitySurgery.com.mx Dr. Tirando -Mazatlan - itirado@mazatlan.com.mx

GREAT POST!!!!!!!!!! Gettem'

GOOD LUCK JEAN!!!!!!!!!!! Be sure to post an update when you get back!

CONGRATS!!!!!!!!!!!!! and thank you so much for the update! as a prebanded person I crave all these accounts! 22lbs is AWESOME! You should be so proud.

Happy Day!!!!!!!!!

Damn! I was hoping they would get approved! You fought a good fight and really helped a lot of people over on the insurance board! That Said: www.lapbandrockies.com (Denver under 10K) Tallgrass Surgical Center in Topeka Kansas (TravelGirl went there) I believe it is under 10K as well. And the entire Mexican circuit.. yesterday I saw a really detailed thread on this that listed ALL of them and their prices.

KAT: HUGS!!!!!!!!!!!! reading about your grandbaby had my heart pounding! I hope they admit her and get her infection down. Thank goodness your daughter is a nurse!

Wooooooooooooooooohooooooooooooo!!!!