Help......................

3 months ago some lady posted on the Oh board about the medicaid taking really long to approve her wls......she had to get the governor involved ... i would like to know is she did get approve by medic aid and when is her surgery...the reason i ask because i also have medicaid and will like to know what to do to speed up the process instead of going around in circles....your help is greatly appreciated.... PEACE s.a.m

Well I will be a year out in 5 weeks, but it took me 5 yrs of BS to reach that point. I did get my Senator involved. Our Governor don't give a hoot about what's going on. [i know people in his office] I contacted the Senator in my district and she got up Medicaids butt, because I simply asked how long must I wait for treatment? Well the letters on my profile. There are others here who have been approved through Medicaid, however it depends on when your info was submitted. Last Feb 04, my PCP submitted and we were told 45 days till determination. It took 90, then it took another 90 before we had that info in hand and could move forward. This year Medicaid it telling people it will take 1 yr.. so all I can do is pray for the rest of us to eventually get through the red tape. There are no shortcuts, unless your request has been sitting in Medicaids office for a while now. As I said, I contacted my Senator. Every time you call Medicaid also, I heard [rumor?]that your case is shuffled back to the bottom of the pile. YOU don't bug them, ask your Dr. to call and inquire. If you go to this site: http://www.senate.state.oh.us/senators/index.html, you can find out who your Senator is by zip. Be honest when you write him/her about the length of time Medicaid has spent sitting on your request. After all, it is documented, from the moment it leaves your Dr to the moment it arrives at Medicaid...

SAM, I hate to say this, but it took me a good 18 months to get an answer from Ohio Medicaid in my case. I could never get any one to write me or call me back. I ended up with 2 denials and 2 state hearings. Finally they sent the approval to my Primary care Doc, who had moved to Wooster Ohio in the meantime and the records were in storage in another town. My approval letter sat there for 5 months. OSU had to have the original to even start the process of the nutritional counseling, psych evaluation and meeting with the surgeon. It is an aggravating long road, but NEVER NEVER give up. Keep writing those letters, keep calling. If there is an application process ( as there was at OSU) get your application in. The sooner the better. They keep them on file and gather info as it comes in from various Doctors and hospitals. Just keep believing that your time will come. If you have to get to the hearing phase.. Speak from your heart. Have friends and family write letters and read them to the hearing officer. Have them tell the officer how your life is affecting by your obesity. At my last hearing, I left all my medical records at home and read a letter to the judge from my son. Why he wanted his mom to have the surgery, and how my being obese affected his life, and my life. There wasnt a dry eye in the room and I was approved. If you need more info contact me at my e mail and I will be glad to help. Hugs, Laura 310/172/130 Whoopie!!!