Surgery a no go for now

From what I was told he does not know if he will be working out of Paradise Valley or not, they have to approve him first.   This place has told me so many lies, I am not so sure I believe any of it anymore.  Once I got upset and asked for honesty I got a lilttle more than I am sure was to be let out.  Do not bank on a date anytime soon.

PLEASE HELP ME UNDERSTAND WHAT IS GOING ON WITH DR. VILLARES.  I JUST FOUND OUT 2 HOURS AGO MY SURGERY IS A NO GO FOR FRIDAY NOV 30TH ALSO.  I CALLED THE OFFICE TO MAKE SURE EVERYTHING IS GOOD.  THAT'S WHEN MY DREAMS CAME TO A CRASHING HALT.  PLEASE, ANYBODY  HELP ME WITH ANOTHER DR. I WANTED THE SLEEVE SURGERY BUT I AM OPEN TO THE BYPASS TO: ROBIN O.  I'M IN THE SAME BOAT IF YOU HAVE ANY INSIGHT ON ANY OTHER DOCTOR PLEASE LET ME KNOWH.                       

Why not try Dr. Blackstone.  She works within a 'center of excellence' and sometime insurance companies will only work with those facilities.

I'm going to go back to my PCM and see if I can get a referral to Dr. Blackstone.  I just paranoid that Dr. Villares is the only Doc that takes TRICARE in the valley. Shawn

Giving up your dream of health because of the problems within the medical community is so unfair to yourself.  If indeed the doctor was forced out, I would want to know exactly why.  This would be highly unusual.  If there are no providers available in the area for Tricare, I thought they would approve a doctor not previously covered.  Talk to Tricare and see exactly what the policy is.  Right now you are hurt and disappointed and with good reason, but please re-consider giving up totally.

HI Robin: First call Tricare. Check to see what doctors are in your network. These are the doctors that will be covered by your insurance. If so and you have already being APPROVED  it should not be that hard to transfer to a new surgeon, as long as they are on that list. You need to do this asap. Also if your current surgeon is going to work out of Pleasant Hospital make sure that hospital is also covered under your insurance. I agree the wls journey can be stressful. But the rewards are great. Good luck Pam

I used Dr Steven Simon he works out of Paradise Valley Hospital ...Dr was AWESOME my approval went soooo fast ...start to end was 3 mo's ....I did not like the hospital..BUT Dr Simon was great..he even used that pain ball thing so there is NO post op pain to speak of ..

Yes I was HOT the other day when I said I was giving up and just going to live the fat and happy life.  I understand there are other Doctors in the area, but I am on Tricare, not many Doctors take Tricare around here.  My main issue is, I already had 3 relatives who had to cancel airfares that they had already made to come and stay to help out with our baby.  We have no family around here so I have noone to help with our little one.  This is not something that I can just make it as easy as finding another Doctor.  If we do not get orders out of the state by the end of the year then I will try to find another Doctor and hope that all the test, etc.  I have done will still be good and another Dr will accept them.   Thanks to everyone for the vote of confidence and all the positive vibes, this is the most support I have seen since i been in this state.  Thanks to you all. I wish everyone a very HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

I don't know if Dr. Blackstone is taking new patients or not, but I do know that her office accepts Tricare. My friend just had the gastric bypass done a month ago from Dr. Blackstone herself. I will tell you, she is the best. From what I hear she is the #2 bariatric surgeon in the country. Good Luck and You'll thank yourself later by not giving up.

Just to let everyone know.  I contacted Dr. Backstone's office via her website and yes the do work with Tricare Standard, but they don't take Tricare Prime.  That was kind of a bummer to find out because from everything I"ve seen on this site, she is great.  Hope you have Tricare Standard!