need info please

Hi, I just had my surgery on the 12th of Jan. I have Cigna but maybe a different policy. I called and they sent me the info for it. I had to do a medically supervised 6 month diet and weigh in. I could not miss a month. You might want to call and tell them it is medically necessary and see what happens again. Hopefully you will get somewhere. Good Luck. Insurances can be a pain. Roxanne

Diane, Each insurance company is very different. Even within a specific company, it all depends on the state in which you hold your policy. I have BCBS of Michigan. They have never not paid for anything. But for weight loss surgery they require a Doctors supervised diet for 1 full year, proof of exercise and all means nessessary including drugs. Other BCBS's have no problem and ususally approve immediately. I don't want to wait another year...I am already almost a year into this journey. So for me, I am paying for it myself. It wasn't as expensive as I thougth and my surgery will be on April 10th. But to be honest, I have read about some Cigna policy's that don't pay and others who do. You will have to do some hardcore research into this. I would suggest talking to a supervisor when you call. Don't settle for the person who answers the phone. BCBS totally misinformed me when I first called them. They never told me about the wait. I started this process and then found out 6 months into it. My prayers will be with you....put up a good fight....God Bless Patti from NH having surgery in RI

Diane - this is off the subject but since you are going all the way to RIfor surgery, if you itemize, make sureyou take medical miles on your taxes.

Hi all Just wanted to add to the insurance subject. I have worked for medical insurance companys for a long time. The decision is made 100% according to the policy of the company you work for. The next deciding factor is medical necessity. So, you and your neighbor could have Cigna/ BCBS, etc......and they willl cover it for one and not the other. Sometimes even with-in the same company, policies are different for upper management and they have things covered that others don't. Don't rely on info others tell you. Call your insurance company and get info on what is covered under YOUR policy. If they say NO---you need to go to HR where you work and work with them to change the policy. You also need to be armed with all the medical necessity info you can gather........................Hope this clears up insurance info for some of you .....kathy