question about pre-op requirements

why exactly do they require you to lose 10% of your body before your surgery?most poeple cannot even lose 5 pounds let alone 10% of thier body weight.....im 5'8" and weigh 272 pounds,if i lost 10% of my body weight(27 pounds)i would weigh 245 pounds,which would make my bmi 37.2 instead of 41.4,wouldnt my insurance co. just say"if you can lose 27 pounds,you can just lose the rest of your weight" or something to that effect??im confused about this.what if you CANT lose the 10%???

When the surgeon submits your paperwork to the insurance company for approval, they use your weight before your pre-operative weight loss, so if you qualify now, you would qualify no matter how much weight you lost prior to surgery. I am not sure about the weight loss requirement. I know some programs are real sticklers for it, and will absolutely not do the surgery if you do not complete the required weght loss, they say it is a commitment to a lifestyle change, blah, blah, blah, and they believe most of us can lose weight, but can't keep it off. I was not required to lose any weight, and, if the truth be told, I have never made an attempt to lose weight in my entire life, although there are times when I did lose a lot, I was not trying. Good luck on your weight loss, anyway, and good luck in getting this surgery. I am so pleased that I did! Carrie

ok,that makes sense i guess.thanks for your reply!

Whew, thank goodness, the program at DHMC that I went to only requires a 15 lb weight loss. Good luck! Karen

I lucked out, didn't have to lose any weight prior to surgery, just was not allowed to gain, we were told if we gained any weight from our first meeting to our last that you would have to wait 6 months before he would let you start the process over. The nurse said that was to stop people from going out and eating like they will never eat again and put on all kinds of weight, I actually lost 5 lbs though in between my appointments (thank goodness).... Jennie

its actually 10% of the weight you need to lose.....like if you are 150 pounds overweight.......you would have to lose 15.....its really not as bad when you look at it like that. good luck, Jane Ps.....Portsmouth program is VERY STRICT about the weight loss, there are MANY reasons why