Is a supervised diet required?

Do you have to have a supervised diet before your insurance will consider approving you for weight loss surgery? I am trying to find out how many there are of us out there. Maybe we can have a small group to support those of us who have to weigh in regularly in order to have the surgery. Beth M

Not all insurance companies require the supervised diet. Most want at least some kind of proof that you have tried to lose weight and weren't successful in either losing or keeping it off. Who is your insurance company?? Maybe someone on the board has had them and can tell you if you will need a supervised diet. I have Bluegrass Family Health and they require a 6 month supervised diet. The only problem, you can't lose more than 12 lbs in that 6 months or they consider the diet successful. Not sure WHY they would consider it successful, but they do. Your surgeon's office should know if your particular insurance company requires the supervised diet. You could also call your insurance company and find out the requirements. Good luck.

My insurance stipulated that there be a 6 month doctor supervised diet within the 2 years before applying for WLS. I did not have that. I went to my doctor's office and went through my records. I made a transcript of every date and weight for every doctor's visit over the preceeding 20 years. It was an illuminating experience for me and quite obvious when you looked at the fluctuations that I'd had a very long struggle with weight loss. I submitted that to my insurance along with a letter of personal appeal for the surgery. They received my request and APPROVED it the SAME DAY! Good luck! Rhonna