I am so bummed out :'(

I have not posted for a few months cigna has been stringing me along since july and just denied me, in january the company insurance is going to change to UHC ill. ppo or epo and I have been told they wont cover the surgery cigna said they wanted a clinical work up and 6 months of weigh****chers well I put some of this weight on with weigh****chers so what am i suppose to do? why does this have to be so freaken hard? I have tears running down my face and people are telling to to try a gym and a salad before you try surgery. what the freak can't people understand that i have tried that. can anyone offer me advice on what to do next

Cheer up uhc is very good at covering wls. My wife and I both had our surgeries when we had uch insurance. Look forward to next year when you can have your surgery. Ot not too far away. Cigna does not like to pay and the reality is that some insurance companies hope to play the delay game and hope another insurance company will pay. I had a very hard time getting approved. UHC lost my original paperwork and then I needed a cardiac clearance when my cardiologist would not give. My surgeon operated anyway and everythning went well. My heart is very bad but the weight loss has really helped. I have an aunt who is over 65 and wants surgery. Medicare would not pay at first, but they are changing their policy and if she has her 1 year doctor supervised diet they will cover the wls for her. She had to start in august, but by next august of september she will have her surgery. She just has to be a little patient. UHC has gotten a lot better. My wife had her surgery six months after mine and had no problems with UHC. We just had to pay our out of pocket deductibel about $1500 and they paid the rest of it. Be patient and your turn will come. Try to not at least gain too much your surgery is so much easier if you can lose a little weight.

I had UHC and they approved mine, but you might want to talk to your HR dept as soon as possible and make sure that there is no exclusions on your policy in regards to WLS. If you let them know in advance your HR dept might have a chance to work with them to make sure they will cover it. Good luck to you and keep your head up, it will come before you know it.

Elizabeth, I'm sorry you're having such a tough time. Yeah, UHC policies can differ and it depends on who buys the policy. My surgery was covered but some are not. I've been told that there are 4 UHC policies and one does not cover WLS. Call HR and check on that part. I want to talk to you about Cigna. A friend of mine had surgery last year and had to jump through the hoops as well. Do you have a regular PCP that you've seen over the past year? If so..they weighed you each visit correct? My friend asked her PCP to write a letter including her weights and she explained in detail the diets/activities she'd been trying on her own to lose weight. There are a trillion diets out there and I believe she tried Atkins and weigh****chers. If you have any paperwork from WW or payment receipts...paperclip them to go with the PCP letter. The letter was sufficient and she was approved for her RNY soon after. So, I just thought I'd mention that to you. There are ways around the hoops! Good luck and keep us posted! Kelli

I am so sorry for you! I can't imagine what you are going through and I know that there is nothing I can say to make it better. I had to have six months for supervized diet and I had weigh****chers and a low card diet. You said that you had been on weigh****chers before. Do you still have the little book that they tracked you weight on? I had my book and thats all I needed for that. Do you have a surgeon? Sometimes, atleast at my surgeon's office they have an insurance person who will take care of stuff like that. The important thing is if you want this surgery you can have it. You do need to talk to you hr department to see if you have any exclutions in your policy. If there are none you will have the surgery you will just have to be patient and do exactally what they say to do. I know that you are frustrated but don't give up. Hopeful for you, Penni

Awww sweetie - I'm so sorry you're getting the run around. I agree with the others, not all policies with the same company cover the same thing. So if you can't get CIGNA to cover the surgery before your insurance changes, then just wait until January, and call your new company yourself, and find out what YOUR policy covers. Regardless of what anyone else tells you - call yourself and find out about your specific policy. I'm praying it all works out for you. Traci 250/143/149