Questions about Duke WLS (just got medically approved)

I just heard from Duke that i was medically approved for surgery (holy ****)!

The person that I talked to said they review the records for keywords before submitting to insurance and they are very rarely turned down. 

Has anyone that has gone with Duke had trouble getting approved by insurance?

I had my surgery done at Duke and I was approved, however there were some people in my class that did not get approved, or were doing all these weird things, like diets for 6 months, etc. to get approved.  It really depends on who your insurance company is.  Now if you have Blue Cross Blue Shield of NC - YOUR GOLDEN!! 

Kendall

Hi Sam,

I had my surgery through Duke and my husband will be having his through them as well. They are very careful about being sure that your package is in good order before submitting it to insurance and I believe that you can be quite confident that it will muster the determination process if they say it has passed Duke's medical approval and is ready for insurance submission.

I wish you luck as you await word from your insurance provider and look forward to hearing that you have been approved and are having your surgery scheduled.

All the best,

Barb

WOW....that's great news!

Did you get a phone call or letter from Duke?

I just checked the Duke patient website and found out that my chart is now complete and will be submitted to insurance  but I have not talked with anyone there.

~ Jennifer

I forgot my login.  I've been calling

I've had trouble reaching them by phone so I sent a fax instead. Just an idea.
~ Jennifer

I'm in insurance hell right now. I have UHC and now they tell me my supervised diet did not meet their criteria. What insurance do you have?

Goldstondebbi,
I'm sorry to hear about the trouble you're having with the insurance company. I don't know much about UHC as I have BCBS of CA (Anthem). You may want to go to the insurance help forum, I got some very helpful feedback from the folks there. Good luck!
~ Jennifer

If you can't get insurance approval... as in... my insurance company would not allow me to have the surgery... so I got a seperate policy with BCBS of NC.  The monthly fee was high 1,200.  and I had a 4,000 deductable.... however, once I had the surgery - I dropped the policy.  Also Duke will work with you on paying the 4,000 and put you on a monthly payment thing.  So... if you really want the surgery and you don't have the 40K to shell out to have it done... and don't want to go to Mexico... this might be the option for you. 

Just a thought to help you out.

Kendall