TriCare in AZ??? (military ins)

Hello all! I am wondering if anyone has or has dealt with Tricare in AZ? My husband was in the Navy reserves and has been activated and deployed to Iraq... anyhow I used to have BCBS but now I have Tricare through the military and I wanted to know if anybody has any clue how much money out of pocket it cost them with this insurance, or how long it took them for approval... etc. I had been working on getting the surgery when I had the BCBS so I have all my pre-op required tests completed, so basically all I am waiting on is my next appointment with my surgeon (March 19th!!!) so that I can tell him about my new insurance and hopefully we can get the approval quickly and set a date. I have heard that Tricare is very good about approvals and also very SPEEDY. SO I was hoping to find SOMEONE/ANYONE who has Tricare and can tell me how their approval process was and basically just how much out of pocket they had to spend! THANKS!!!

I have Tricare and so far I've only paid co-pays for the different doctor visits.  It usually 12 to 25 dollars.  I have not had the procedure yet, so I'm not sure about the hospital cost.  I think the hospital stay is only like 25 a day, but don't quote me.  I think it also matters if you have Tricare prime versus Tricare standard.  I don't know how they are different, but I think more surgeons take standard than prime.  I have prime and the only surgeon I know about in Phoenix who take Tricare Prime is Dr. Villares. Hope this helps,

Shawn

I don't know if I have regular Tricare or if I have the Tricare Prime... I will have to look into that! I hope my surgeon up here in Flagstaff takes whichever one I have, I know he takes Tricare, but I didn't know there were two kinds ,lol!

The WLIAZ takes Tricare.  Recently they started accepting the Lap-Band but before they just covered the gastric bypass.  Give me a call or send me a reply and I can go over the details.

www.wliaz.com

Hi, Jaclyn, I had Tricare Prime and didn't have any problem getting approved once the paperwork finally was submitted to them (as I recall, it was just a couple of days before I was approved).  Granted I had 4 or 5 co-morbidities which helped the situation.  Dr. Newhoff was my doctor but unfortunately he has retired and I believe Dr. Villares is the only surgeon in Phoenix taking Tricare.  The only out-of-pocket expense I had was the $25 for the hospital visit and now the $12 co-pay for the follow up visits with the surgeon.  Plus buying all the protein drink that one needs after surgery.  Good luck! P.S. The picture is my "before" picture -- I just haven't taken the time to update but I have lost 145 pounds to date.  My surgery was July 31, 2006. Virginia

YAY!!! That is awesome! I think my surgeon up in Flagstaff takes Tricare, but that was last time I checked, about 6 months ago. And I just talked to his office today and told them of my new insurance, and they didn't say anything about him not taking it, so I think I am in the clear! I have a lot of co-morbidities too, I am embarrassed to say so since I am so "young"... I have sleep apnea, pre-diabetes, lower back pain, hypothyroid, high cholesterol., depression.. I don't know if all those count as true co-morbities, but they will at least help with getting the surgery approved! I am glad to hear of how quickly your surgery was approved, I have heard that first hand from a few people now so I am starting to believe it! =] *fingers crossed* Thanks so much for your reply and congrats on your weight loss!!! I bet it feels just amazing...

Jaclyn, It is amazing.  I can do so many more things that I could not do before.  It's a great journey.  I'm now off my blood pressure meds, diabetes medication and inhaler.  The only meds I take now are for allergies.  I'm still on a c-pap but am hoping that will go away once I have lost another 25 pounds.  Good luck to you! Virginia