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Showing results for 'Fed BC/BS'.
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A Date to Meet the Surgeon
HOWLUCKYAMI replied to TQUAD64's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
Hi There! I'm from California, too. I'll be having my surgery at Valley Care in Pleasanton. I'm just about a week behind you in the process...I meet with my surgeon on 9/29/08. In fact, I'm doing sort of a 'consultation blast' that day, meeting with the nurse, dietician, psych and surgeon over a 5 hour period in one day. I'm so glad that they offered an all-in-one, as those individual appointments would have really dragged out the process. If I am deemed a candidate, I'll be well on my way! My BMI is 42, no co-morbities but for joint pain associated with my extra weight, and slightly elevated cholesterol on my last lipid panel. Like you, I have Anthem BC. But boy do I have a long history of unsustainable weight loss. Been battling the bulge for over 30 years with little success. Valley Care tells me that they are pretty good about turning around approvals, so I could be banded by the end of November! I am psyched! Good luck to you! -
LOL Irene! My claim to fame... :thanks: <BR><BR>SFO, my DH is snipped (hence me not being on any type of BC at all) so maybe that has something to do with it. I too, hear that women are more fertile post-op, :preggers: losing weight, etc. so I'm glad we have been done for years.
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chica, I have seriously thought of trying to gain also my BMI is 38 just shy of the 40. Luckily I flunked the sleep apnea testing (is that not sick) I do have a health issue along with Thyroid, I do not know if that is enough for bc/bs or how long it will take for approval. If all else fails I will be gaining along with you sweetie. Cathy
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at night i was getting these terrible reflux/regurgitation episodes...not sure why,im not too tight b.c i can eat during the day no real problem, was once too tight i know what that feels like...anywho...so if i eat or drink anything after 6 at night, i am up regurgitating for hours...last night i had some water at about 7, mistake, b.c i woke up chocking with fluid, which i assume is the water coming up into my mouth and out my nose!!!! i guess bc. i was choking...anyone else have this? i am so mad about this b.c next month is me and dh anniversary and wanted to go out to eat, but i cant! or else i will have a terrible night! anyone have similar stories or words of wisdom
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no out of pocket expense
sisterc replied to beautifult's topic in Tell Your Weight Loss Surgery Story
Congrats - I felt the same way when I found out BC/BS covered everything, but the application fee of $500. All insurance companies should work with all patient to make sure they get the best care and services for all people. Congrats on the new you! -
Hi all. I am wondering about the drug test requirement under the Federal BCBS plan. Did you just have your pcp order it?
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Anyone have any idea how long I will have to wait To get approval from my insurance company? I submitted everything they asked for yesterday and was hoping someone can give me an estimate of how long it takes for blue cross blue shield to make a decision.
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So i mentioned before that I had ppwk submited on 4/30 and I was approved on 5/7..yay me! buuuuuuut...yes, here comes the BUT.... i was reading online on an obesity website bout the insurance approval letters and to make sure they dont expire...well i havent gotten mine in the mail so I called Cigna to see if there was some type of 'expiration' and I was told YES...it expires on 5/23 which means and i quote "you have to have surgery on 5/22" UMMMMM. I had told my doctor i couldn't have it until 6/22 and then cigna said i need to have my doctor call them right away to change the date but it may not be able to be changed because i have to have surgery within 6 months of my start date which was in November.. how can i have surgery within 6 months of my start date if CIGNA requires a 6 months supervised diet and a bunch of other crap before they will approve? so that doesn't make sense and to top it off, i haven't started any type of liquid diet not to mention havent even had my PREOP appt, scope or paid for the damn thing....i HATE HATE HATE receiving mis-information or BS information... has anyone experienced this? or is someone (at CIGNA) blowing smoke up my a--.....ok sorry for the vent post but im pretty pissed...
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Did you try to appeal this? I suspect there are different levels of coverage. I have Empire Blue right now but may be switching to BC/BS of MI and would be pretty dissapointed if they didn't cover fills etc.
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Help at my wits end!
AlienBandit replied to andora's topic in POST-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
I knew of someone who was having almost the same problems as you. She got her band and started on her fills when within a few months of being banded, she started getting stuck on everything. It only got worse and worse. After a few unfills she had nothing in her band and she was still miserable. Sometimes she would go to the hospital to be hooked up to an IV for liquids because she couldn't even drink most days. After tons of tests ( endoscope, upper GI, xrays etc) the doctor couldn't see anything wrong with her band. She was on meds and swollen from all the pbing vomiting etc. Finally she got so fed up and asked for the band to be removed. When the doc took it out they found she had an infection around the band on the outside of her stomach hence why they wouldnt see it when they looked inside her stomach. It was a very long surgery as her stomach was in terrible shape ( had to slowly remove the band in parts and so on). She ended up in the hospital for about a week and even had to have a drain through her nose. In the end she was ok but couldnt get the band again after that. I dont mean to scare you but maybe the problem is the same as infection around the band or maybe your body is just rejecting it? -
Day 4 pre op Went out last night to my sister's birthday party and packed my protein shake, crystal light, and made my cream of mushroom. I ate my soup quietly and the only ppl that noticed were my table mates. My bff and immediate family already knows amd when I told my cousin I was on a liquid diet she left it at that. I didn't want to bring attention to myself at my sister's big day and everything worked out, my family and true friends are very understanding bc they have seen me go from the skinniest to the heaviest sister in almost 20 yrs. The food I brought was enough to last me the entire party. However I went to bed with a tickle in my throat and woke with a tingle in my sinus. Really hoping it's not a cold. I will be drinking a lot of tea today. My youngest woke with a runny nise and he's my allergy kid so it might just be allergies (hope.) Sent from my SM-G930T using BariatricPal mobile app
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Hello everyone, My name is Heather Conrad and I live in Nashville TN. I am 43 years old and have battled weight for most of my life. However, since my back went bad, my weight has completely gone out of control. I am only 5'1 and currently weigh 213ish. I know that number does not seem super big but, on a tiny frame such as mine, it feels terrible. I have tried every diet known to man and I only end up yo yoing. I had back surgery one year ago and since packed it on. I used to be really active and led such a healthy lifestyle and I feel this surgery is my chance to have that back again. I am currently on many pain medications, and hypertension medication. My goal is to lose this weight and get off all meds. I just wanted to share a little about myself and I would appreciate any support I can get. Oh yeah, my first appt., is this Th. I am going through Vanderbilt. Does anyone have experience there. I have federal BC/BS, and they require a 3 month supervised weight loss which I think is ridiculous. I have my last two years of weight loss tries documented but, whatever it takes. At least it is not 6 mos. to a year like I have read on some other insurances. I am interested in the VSG. Any comments are welcome and appreciated. Thanks Heather -
any problems with blue cross blue sheild of Ga.
PATCHELTON replied to swiley's topic in Insurance & Financing
I don't have a Ga plan, but I have Blue Choice from BC/BS in Maryland. They took 4 weeks from submission of paperwork to approval. I had to do a 6 month supervised diet prior to submission, so you could say they took 7 months, but I had very little out of pocket expense, though they don't pay for fills once you are out of the 90 day post surgery period. All in all, after reading some of the nightmares posted here, my approval process wasn't bad at all. I even used an out of network dietician and psych evaluator (paid them myself), since they were on the team that was doing my surgery. I feel for those getting an insurance runaround. -
BC/BS Federal
Phillygirl_in_DE replied to albare1978's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
I have fed bcbs and was approved in 1 week. Had my vsg on tuesday! Good luck! They are great insurance to have! Sent from my SM-G920V using the BariatricPal App -
Hello all, I'm new to this. I have been researching LapBand for about a year now and have finally decided to go through with it. I have had my consult with True Results and go for my Psych eval, blood work, and Nutrition appointments tomorrow. I am with BC/BS of CA, and wondering how long the approval wait has been for others who have/had this insurance. . I'm very anxious and ready to get this done so I can start living a much better, healthier life:smile:! -Gretchen-
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I was banded Feb 16 and didn't even weigh myself unless I had a doctor's appointment. My first follow up was in late March. I had only lost 15 lbs at that point and knew it bc I couldn't eat as much as I did pre-band but could eat whatever I wanted and more than anyone that would/should be dieting. I wanted to let the band do the work. I don't eat much junk food anyway but I really wanted to let the band do it. It wasn't until the first of May that I got an aggressive fill and it started to work where I could feel restriction. I lost another 10 lbs in less than two weeks and since then it's been a battle and struggle but definitley coming off better. I am at about 50 lbs lost now and trust me I wish it was more. I am a slow loser compared to others. My weight also can fluctuate 5 lbs up and down depending upon the time of day that I weigh myself. The morning it's 216 and in the evening with work clothes and shoes it can be 220. Crazy I know but my clothes are finally getting too big. I am so freaking fat and need to lose at least 100 lbs total that people can hardly notice hopefully that means they haven't noticed how much I had gained. NOT! Also getting to this point has not been easy...fills...unfills...even the dreaded ER visit bc I was throwing up hourly but it was all saliva. Awful. It has been a battle and it's a tool. I used to think about doing this as the easy way out. It is so not the easy way out. Try to stick to healthy food choices and relax. It'll kick in and then you will have to work with it. I kept searching this site for clues, answers and support. I am addicted to it and appreciate all I have read about. I don't have a support group - this is it. I hope this helps you too.
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The surgeon said that many WLS are beginning to phase the band out due to the addition maintenance and future surgeries required bc it is just plastic and it won't last forever. My insurance will only cover ONE surgery a lifetime so if it failed I'd be screwed...(his words not mine)
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Hi and welcome, Congratulations on your bundle of joy and your upcoming marriage, both great ideas for getting healthy and losing weight. I hear about lots of insurance companies now covering the band. I had Anthem bc/bs ppo last year when I started looking into the band and I think they cover now with no problems. I didn't even bother because I wanted my surgery like yesterday and didn't want to go through all of that and was self pay in Mexico so I'm not positive about the insurance thing, but I'm sure some others will chime in and help you. You might want to go to the insurance forum part and check there. I'm sure you find many that do cover. Good luck and you've came to the right place for excellent information and friends and support.
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soon to be banded
sunshine6855 replied to LovelyLaFleur's topic in Tell Your Weight Loss Surgery Story
I don't have a date for surgery, but by June 9 will have finished all the pre-op consults, etc. I will just need insurance approval which should not be a problem as I have BC BC federal and the surgery is covered. I am going on vacation mid-june and out of town for work the last week in June. I hope I can have the surgery after that in July. I will find out probably by mid-june. I am ready. My only problem seems to be that now that I have decided on surgery my appetite is through the roof...did that happen to anyone else? Good luck with your surgery. sunny -
Unfortunately there is no magic skin poofing button. LOL I wish! I have lost 152lbs and have a lot of the same issues with chaffing. Even so without long history of having that skin problem documented most insurances will not cover removing it, because they say it's cosmetic. I say BS. I had a terrible time with my bat wings....they were very large and even though I had gotten to my optimal weight I still had residual fat and tons of leftover skin and no matter what I did, nothing helped. I did not even realize how badly it pulled on my neck. So I pain 5950.00 to have them removed 5 weeks ago. I have to do the same with my stomach and breasts because everything is hanging low pulling on my spine. I have osteoarthritis of the spine and have had 6 back surgeries so far. Hoping to hold off another one. Anyway, you think insurance would cover these things given Morbid obesity is a metabolic disease. Yikes! It will cost me another 18K to have both my Abdominalplasty and breast lift with augmentation. That is the bad news.....the good news is there are excellent surgeons out there who can do this kind of work if you can raise the funds to do it. It is the only way I know of taking that skin off your body. It simply will not go away without it.
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So there is light at the end of the tunnel ) I sort of also feel fed up at this point but then there are times when u simply can't help it
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Breakthrough! Women 48 to 55 - MUST READ
S@ssen@ch replied to BajanSleeve's topic in Gastric Sleeve Surgery Forums
OMG! I had the EXACT same thing happen. That's why I saw my gyno at the end of the year. Totally ruined my Christmas by the way. She put me on a round of BC pills (with progesterone), but I honestly felt a little crazy on them. Very emotional. She said my uterus was enlarged and did a biopsy (I wouldn't recommend that BTW, VERY painful). -
Do i start the process with my regular doctor? i am clueless! I also have seen a few post saying Federal BC/BS is fairly easy to get approved. IM soooo excited.
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I've been waiting for 2011 for insurance reasons and it's FINALLY here. I see my surgeon for a follow up Tuesday morning and they are resubmitting everything that day or Wednesday. I've been through the whole process for approval and everything was put on hold back in May 2010 bc the company I work for required 5 years CONSECUTIVE coverage under the health insurance......they didn't care that I've been employed there for 10 years! I changed insurance back in 2005 for like 3 months when I married my husband but went right back to my own coverage as soon as I could...but it wasn't effective until Jan 2006......SO here I am....the 5 year requirement is met, everything else is done. I'm so ready to get my tool strapped in and start changing my life for good! :-)
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I have FED. BCBS
