Does $17,000 Seem too High for this surgery??????

[JaxFab44 0]

Today I had my first consultation and they told me it will cost 17,000 if I self-pay. My husbands insurance bcbs of Florida will not cover it so now I will see if I can get a company that covers it through my employer but I really thought it would cost about $10,000.:cry

[redantz00 0]

Hello,

i was self pay also and i had my surgery 12/18 and in total i paid 16,000 so your price sounds about right to me.

[Totallytater 1]

I flew to Denver and had mine for just under $10,000. Very legitimate surgeon who has tons of lap surgery experience of all types. Has done lots of lap bands too. I think he has had patients fly in from almost every state. You only have to fly in once, but I am actually going to fly in for my fills for the 1st year, then I will get a fill doctor locally. Good luck.

[socaldixiegal 0]

In general the procedure can run from $17-30,000 depending on practice. That's a general quote I saw in doing research. Mine was $16,500 which also included 1 year of fills and post-care. Bigger selling point for me was it's a local practice - especially important to me as it can take support from your doctor to get to the right fill point.

[gabeekeeper 0]

Hey,

I had my surgery done by Dr. Baptista and I was self pay.

I had the procedure done at the Jacksonville Surgery Center and that saved me some money. I liked it there, the nurses are very attentive to you from the time you get there until you leave. One was right by me the entire time.

I went in for my first appt. on 10/24/07 and had my surgery on 11/27/07.

My cost was : first visit/pre-op visit - $500.00

meeting w/ nutritionist - $100.00

Surgeon Fee -$5000.00

Jax Surgery center fee- $8800.00

Anesthesia - $500.00

_________

Total $14900.00

Did you meet with Dana? Was it the free consultation? I never did that, I just set up the $500 appt. The paper they give you with the price for Shands and Baptist Memorial is higher than the Jacksonville Surgery Center. If your BMI is less than 50 and you do not have alot of health problems like heart, etc, then they can do it at Jacksonville Surgery Center.

The cost I calculated up did not include the blood test I had to have done at my doctors office and also the EKG.

Believe me, it is well worth the money spent. And it is all a TAX WRITE OFF! Any treatment of Obesity can be claimed on your taxes.

I feel so much better. I was 335 in October, had my surgery 11/27/07 and I am now at 293 --- Grand total of 42 pounds,,, and the inches that are coming off are amazing!!!

[TxArcher 2]

Here in Waco, TX, the doc charges $14000 for self pay. I almost had to go that route, but my insurance ended up working out for me!

[CajunCutie 1]

I did a lot of research when I was selecting my surgeon. I finally selected Dr. Lavin to be my surgeon b/c of his experience. Also, his staff is wonderful!!! My surgery cost $13500 which includes 1 year of fills. After the 1st year, fills are $50.

[Pattypoo1 0]

Mine was $15,500 in Tampa. That includes one year of fills and all visits for one year.

[JaxFab44 0]

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Yes, Dana did the consultation today. When I left, I told myself, yes I am going to get this done even if I have to do self-pay. She mentioned some financing options that didn't look too bad at all.

Congrats on your surgery. I had a bad experience with Anesthesia one time so I think I will have to opt for the Hospital route to be safe.

[TracyinKS 7]

My docs self pay price is 16.5K with one year of fills and aftercare.

Denver is about the least expensive place in the states to get a band, there is a huge thread in the Doctors section of happy customers. I had researched options prior to insurance and if it had been me, my options were Denver, and also Tallgrass Surgical Center in Topeka KS for around 11K (at the time)

Denver is a quick flight from Kansas City, and Topeka would of been a 60 minute drive........ My sister has been in contact with a cordinator from Mexico and she was quoted around 7K for their package......

Also, remember if your BMI meet the Obese category, you can write it off on your taxes and or use a FLEX SPENDInG ACCOUNT for part of it. (Where you take pretax money out of your paycheck) my employer allows us to divert up to 5K into an FSA, then we are issued a Visa debit card to swipe at doctors, dentists, vision, and even Walmart for Over the counter stuff........... I used my Flex to pay all my deductibles and the co-insurance plus more...

Also some people take a loan out of their 401K, or a HELOC on their house........

GOOD LUCK

[shortgal 5]

I self paid. $17800 Total. Hospital was 9000, surgeon 7800 Anesthesia 1200.

Ins. covered consult visit.

I met the BMI requirements for my ins com.but did not have the written proof by way of Dr's office notes showing weigh ins for five consecutive years. (United Healthcare sucks)

[Longhorn 1]

My doctor's fees were $12,500 plus another $1000 or so for labs and consultations. This price isn't unusual in this area, either. So yes, $17,000 does seem high to me but the price does seem to vary in different parts of the country.

[Skinny_Jill 36]

I paid $12,900 in Houston. 17K does seem high to me but I guess it depends on where you are.

[Cota129 0]

I paid 18,600. That included all the pre-op stuff, psych testing, surgery, fills for a year, all the post-op for a year, body imaging through out the year (cool stuff), and unlimited supposrt groups and classes.

[NewSho 20]

For this surgery: to be this healthy, to be this content, to look like I do now (I got brave and finally put new pics on the Before & After thread this morning) I would have paid a LOT MORE.

I know it's a bit high for self-pay but if it's inclusive, you won't be sorry not one bit.