Self Pay Or Insurance For My Lap Band Surgery?

[Ms.Jess27 0]

Hello yall, i'm new to this but I hope I can get some help on here. I had planned to get lap band surgery in March 2012 in Juarez Mx. The dr is going to charge me $6,000.00 for the surgery. Well I signed up for insurance (bcbs tx) at work which will be effective 1/1/2012. Well i was wondering should I try to see if bcbs will cover the surgery or would it be easier if i paid for the surgery myself? Since im barely going to be enrolled would i get denied? How long will it take to find out? Im so confused and hope yall can help me with some advice.

[bashy611 8]

I have no clue about insurance. I'm self pay ... $10,000 through True Results in Houston, Tx. One thing to consider when thinking about getting banded in Mx that you will still need to get fills after your surgery. A fill is when your doctor's office adds Fluid to your band after your surgery. Will you be going back to Mexico every month till you hit the green zone or can you find a doctor in your town that will fill you and how much will each fill cost.

I'm newly banded (6 months) and I have have 3 fills so far. I'm scheduled for my fourth fill in January.

Anyway, hope I've been a little helpful!

[Shellyac 22]

I think that it;s more about having the surgery done locally vs, having it done in Mexico. Many people have reported that it is hard to find a doctor locally who will treat them after having had the surgery in Mexico. Plus you will need to see your doctor often in the beginning stages of having the band. The down side is that you may have to do the the 6 month supervised diet which will mean that you'll have to wait until the summer to have the surgery.

[sandybraman 18]

Before you make that decision, you need to find out if your BC/BS covers bariatric surgery. Its very simple to find out - call the number on the back of your insurance card and they will be able to tell you. It wasn't covered under my policy at all - so I'm self pay and having my surgery on Friday 12/30.

[loretta\ Baconton Georgia 10]

I would find out if y our insurance covers it so that you can go to a local dr. The support that you need for a lapband is woth the wait and hoops that you have to jump through for your insurancce company IF they cover it at all. What is your BMI? I can tell you for insurance most say yyou have to have a BMI of above 40 or a bmi of 35 if you have two comobidites.

[Maddy1 55]

I have BCBS which does cover gastric banding IF your group plan chose that as a procedure they would cover. My employer did not chose that as a covered procedure so I am self pay. $10,000 including first year of office visits and fills.

[Ms.Jess27 0]

My bmi is 46.8 and I'll call bcbs tomorrow to get more info. I really want to get it as soon as possible since I'm getting married next yr and im tired of being over weight