Plastic surgeon in southern Cali?????????

 Hi all, my sister is finally interested in getting plastics. I've been telling her forever that she needs it. She had been to one surgeon who told her that her insurance will not cover plastics for her, but I told her that she should try with the paper that Diana sent me. So she's finally agreed to look into it. Does anyone know of a good plastic surgeon in southern CA who takes Blue Cross PPO? I'm still pre-op so I don't know what she needs to do. And I know many of you have had plastics so any advice or reccomendations would be appreciated. PS I will also post this on the CA board and see what kind of hits I get. Thanks in advance all.

After going to the OH convention, I have heard that BC is getting tighter and tighter about covering PS. I know I have BC PPO and when I had all my reconstructive surgery, BC covered a great deal of my procedures. Yes I did pay out of pocket still because the doctor I used was not a provider. I do not think many of the doctors are providers. Anyway you look at it....you will still have to pay some unless you have Kaiser or another HMO who does cover for medical necessity.

I used Dr. Katzen for all of my work. A number of women here used Dr. Kent and lately there have been several women I know who have used Dr. Q in Mexico all with good results. Main thing is not to go to a doctor just because they take your insurance. You go to a doctor who you feel comfortable, who is board certified, who will give you patients numbers to talk with, and one who shares the pictures. Also you ask what is their specialty in plastic surgery because you want a doctor who is experiened with reconstructive surgery of the formerly MO people.

I know Dr. Katzen has a lot of experience in this area not just because of me.....but he has done a lot of work on people from OH. He has literally dedicated his practice to making a difference in the lives of former fatty's and has done a pretty spectular job of it!

Good luck!

You need to check and see if the Dr. specializes in not only plastics but reconstruction. They are different.  There are many out there that do not specialize in reconstruction.  There are many articles out there about reconstruction after massive weightloss surgery.
Good Luck.
Liz

I was at the OH conference in LA and had consults with all 5 plastic surgeons who were present. The two that I was most comfotable with were Dr. Agha and Dr. Aboolian. I only discussed insurance with each of them for a few moments as my concerns were more about getting the info on what procedures they felt were appropriate for me.

From hearing Katzen speak I really did get the sense that his office is an advocate on the patients behalf for making a case to the insurance company, when approrpriate, for procedures that are medically necessary and not just cosmetic. Not saying that the other docs present wouldn't do this too, but Katzen just happened to talk about it more than the others.

Good luck to your sis! She's lucky to have you looking out for her.

The reason Dr. Katzen brings it up about the insurance so much because he is not misleading. Too many times patients are promised or assured that things are covered only to find out and get their hopes let down because people are not up front.

To eachs own who you go with and who you feel comfortable with, but Dr. Katzen has the most amount of exeprience not only in body reconstruction, but with insurance.

BTW....my insurance paid for most of all my body work and his "office" and "himself" are advocates and he has personally gone through written and oral reviews on my behalf.

Good luck when you get to the reconstructive stage!

I'm more and more impressed with the work my surgeon has done on me with each passing day! His name is Dr. Saul Berger and he's out of Encino, CA. I was a tough extreme case (see my pictures on my profile!)  I'm not sure about which insurance he takes but my hernia repair and panni removal were covered. I paid for the rest. Here's his website, which is new and NOT very impressive as far as I'm concerned. But the pictures he showed me were amazing!!

http://www.drberger.com/
818-990-4545

You can mention me, Leslie, with the huge hernia. He'll remember!!!

I have GEHA, not Blue Cross but I'm pretty such my PS takes Blue Cross PPO.

His name is Ronald Rosso and his practice is Penisula Plastic Surgery in Torrance.  I personally used him to fix my broken nose but he provides the full complement of services.  If and when I need additional services, I am going back to him.  Competent, professional, kind and a great communicator, too.

 Hello. 

I actually just had my breast augmentation today with Dr. Bresnick in Encino. www.drbresnick.com 

I chose him initially because he was on my insurance, Blue Shield PPO, but then his photos sold me. He also has a staff member that deals only with insurance. His consultations are free and since I paid cash for the boob job, I really did have my choice of going to any doctor I wanted and I thought he was the best after meeting several.