Surgery Canceled (Or Hopefully Just Postponed)

[ih8fat 17]

I can't believe my first post on this site is not a good one...

I was approved by BCBSNE for gastric sleeve surgery on 10/18/13 (after only 2 weeks review) and my surgery was scheduled for Monday, 11/11/13. Sounds great, right? Too good to be true, it turns out!

I went in last Thursday for the pre-op EKG and bloodwork and they found an abnormality on my EKG. The anesthesiologist said he wouldn't do the surgery before I got pre-op clearance from a cardiologist. Seriously? 2 days before surgery and you're telling me I need to see a cardiologist??

Fine -- nothing like waiting 'til the last minute! So I call around town and there's only one place my insurance covers that has time to see me -- at 2pm Friday afternoon (remember, my surgery was SUPPOSED to be Monday). They run an EKG and then the cardiologist says that she really can't clear me for surgery. She said that the EKG may be normal for my heart, but if compared to others it may not be. What?? She said they needed to run a couple more tests - an Echocardiogram AND a Nuclear Stress Test (which they have to split into two days, due to my weight...)

Obviously my surgery on Monday is now canceled. Soooo deflated and disappointed.

The cardiologist's office will call me Monday to see if they can fit me for tests within the next week or so -- meaning that surgery on the 18th is out, too (my surgeon only does surgery on Mondays...). Which means it will put my surgery out to the week of Thanksgiving -- that's IF I pass the tests and get cleared.

Here's the kicker--- I'm on my husband's insurance (Blue Cross Blue Shield Nebraska) and his company is changing insurance, effective Dec 1st!So I HAVE to have surgery before then, or I have to start the whole insurance approval process all over again. Insurance at my employer's doesn't kick in until Jan 1, 2014 with Cigna (which has a 3-month monitored diet requirement), so this means, at a minimum, MARCH of next year, if approved (not to mention jumping thru more hoops and more out-of-pocket money)

Now I sit here with a cabinet full of Protein Shakes, Protein powder, bariatric Vitamins, mini spoons/forks, etc (hundreds of dollars worth of stuff), wondering if I will even be able to get this surgery done.

The stress of all of this alone, is enough to give me a heart attack.

Hopefully my second post will be a happier one...

[LipstickLady 25,682]

Hugs to you!

I had the same exact issue as you, but with a week to spare instead of a few days. I asked my surgeon to intervene with a cardiologist so that things would be escalated and pushed through MUCH faster than if I was pursuing it on my own.

Call and ask for their help and explain to them AGAIN about your insurance change. You can make it happen if you are firm, polite, firm, professional and FIRM.

[ProudGrammy 8,322]

surgery on Monday is now canceled.

Oh no!!!!

i agree that you need to be pro-active and constantly talk with the docs office about your concern/problem with the insurance company

since the surgery had to be post-poned "please help me have the surgery before December 1rst"

explain the situation with your hubby and insurance et al

and yes, be very firm!!!! (but sweet/nice too)

I'm so sorry this happened, especially days before planned WLS

hopefully things will work out

don't kick yourself being all upset and starting to binge. that won't help

you will eventually have the WLS - and the less you weigh DOS - the better

crossing my fingers and toes too

good wishes & thoughts being sent your way

kathy

[ih8fat 17]

Thanks for the advice! I called this morning and they are waiting on BCBSNE approval to get the tests done. They've approved the nuclear stress test, but need a peer-to-peer-call to approve the echocardiogram. You'd think it would be the other way around, considering the nuclear test is more intense (I mean, even the name "nuclear" sounds worse than "echo"). I assume that because they've approved the more in-depth test, that the other will be approveed tomorrow.

Then it's just a matter of scheduling and passing the tests this coming week, so that I can schedule (or should I say 'reschedule') the surgery before the end of the month...

I keep wondering if all of this hoop-jumping isn't the REAL stress test? Sure feels like it...

[ih8fat 17]

I have my nuclear stress test tomorrow and Monday (along with the echocardiogram). I just opened a fortune cookie from our dinner last night and said to myself "okay, whatever the fortune is in this cookie is a sign of how these tests will go..." My fortune said "A light heart carries you through all the hard times." I'm taking this as a GOOD SIGN. (But I'm still gonna cross my fingers and toes, too. Not taking any chances!)