Anyone in here going through the NewStart program at St. Alexius?

I have been trying to get this surgery approved for 1 year now. I had to a 6 month supervised diet. I have completed that and now resubmitted. My question is the people at NewStart are not very aggressive has anyone else experienced this? They seem put off by all my questions. I don't understand insurance lingo. I expect them to know what the insurance is wanting. I don't know maybe I am getting impatient but I want someone to also want this for me. I don't want to seem like a bother or just another number. Let me know your thoughts. If you could also I could use some prayers. Thanks all!!!!

Christy i dont know anything about New Start at St. Alexius just do know that some hospitals and doctors do a lot of things before surgery , thank God i had one that didnt require you to jump thru too many hoops. What i can do is pray that you will be able to get this surgery soon whether it is with that program or another one. Maybe you could check with depaul in St. Louis. My sister is going there and they seem to be very agressive with getting her on her way to surgery. Will keep you in my prayers Jan

Hi Christy. I went thru New Start/St. Alexius. It is true, they aren't at all aggressive. I found that my approval started happening when I personally called the insurance company and asked to speak to the person who would be handling the approval. Once I had all of their requirements, it was easier for me just to schedule my subsequent appointments with specialists (cardiac, pulmonary, sleep study, nutritionist, etc). I think they just have so many to handle that they can't do the extra work for approvals. There is an awesome book called "Weight Loss Surgery for Dummies" that I got from Amazon.com that has some really good insurance denial letter responses. I think there is also a forum on OH for that too. Have you given any thought to a surgeon choice yet? I had Norbert Richardson, I was very pleased with him, and see him in Washington for my appointments instead of having to go to STL. I had a stricture repair with Follwell, also very pleased with him. Don't expect much at St. Alexius. I was not impressed with the nursing staff at all. Take a family member along with you to help you out. You will be happy you did. Check out my profile if you get a moment. Saying a prayer for you. ~Diana Halmick~

Thank you so much. I am going to have Dr. Richardson do the surgery. I haven't even had a consult with him yet. I want to stick with him but St. Alexus is driving me crazy. I think I am going to give Dr. Richardson's office a call today. Thanks for all the prayers! Christy

I intially signed up with NewStart and found the very same thing that you are experiencing right now. I HAD to get things done in a very timely manner due to insurance restrictions and restrictions on when I could have time off FOR the surgery once I was approved. It was an exercise in futility. I found that I did 98% of the work and they lost 90% of it. The situation drug on for an interminable amount of time .... I ended up having to switch drs. and I went with Dr. Van Wagner. Technically he is still IN the NewStart program but his office staff did not utilize NewStart in taking care of the paperwork and insurance submissions. They were VERY aggressive and I got the coveted approval after going through 3 denials. I have no issues with the drs. of the NewStart program but I wouldn't give you a rat's hiney for the support staff. They are horrible. Ditto with St. Alexius with the exception of a few special nurses and nurses aides. You don't EVEN want to know of my surgery ordeal at that hospital. I am thankful that my DH was with me the entire time. He took care of me better than any of the staff did. We should of submitted his "bill" for services rendered. All in all I am still glad that I had the surgery. I am now over 2 years out and well past my surgeon's goal that he set for me. I am maintaining and doing quite well.... Hang in there in dealing with NewStart... the surgeon's are worth it... but crack the whip on the support staff. I am HOPING and PRAYING that they are starting to get their act together although it sounds like they are still up to their old hijinks. Best wishes... Pixielf~

Thank you so much for the information on your experience. I was begining to think that it was just me. Yesterday I called Dr. Richardson's office. They were great and are helping me with all my questions. I explained to them my frustration and made no excuses, they just took over. They made me feel like I wasn't just a number. I even explained that I wanted to have the surgery the last week in December because of work restraints and insurance reasons but they said Dr. Richardson is going to be on vacation that week but will be home but he would possible do the surgery and that they will try to work it out. The office manager also said that we should not have a problem getting approval just have a few more hoops to jump through. I am going to see if I can have family stay w/ me at the hospital. I don't know if it will be my husband because we have 2 girls and 2 grannies that live with us that we take care of. I'm glad you mentioned that because I would have not had anyone stay with me. I have never had any surgery in my adult life. I think I may be a little nieve. I know of a few people who had the surgery but I think that everyones experience is different. I think my coping mechanism is that I will be just fine. No one needs to fuss over me. Anyway enough of the babling. Thanks for the input. Christy