Is there anything I can do NOW?

By all means you can switch PCPs and have your records changed. What town do you live in? You do not have to have a PCP recomend a Dr for the surgery. As long as your insurance does not require a referal, just start by checking out the hospitals and drs in your area. And if you are looking for a great DR and office then check out Dr C... he and his staff are great. Shelia

I think tomorrow I will have my hubby see if he can get more info on which BCBS program he will be getting. There is no way on Gods earth we would qualify for any kind of government assistance. If I could find a doc supervised diet that actually worked I wouldn't have a problem with it, my fear is I go on the "supervised" diet lose 30 pounds and am no longer morbidly obese. Then I don't qualify.. then when the weight comes back (as it always does) I start all over. UG! This is quite frustrating isn't it? BTW my uncaring Doc was a male. A fat one LoL

One more thing! I thought for a year WLS wasn't covered because it wasn't listed in the benefits section of the book they gave us. I finally realized (DUH) I had to find a doctor that did the WLS in my network and called BC/BS and they said yes it was a covered benefit pending approval. I wasted alot of time by not knowing what I was doing! I just thought if it wasn't listed under covered benefits it wasn't covered. WRONG!

Okay, here's your gameplan. BCBS has so many variances with each state or plan, the only way you'll know for sure is to call them when you've got an active policy and ask! Now, in the meantime, find some way to get on a documented weight loss plan. Several insurors require 3-6 months of documented effort. That means weigh in on time each month and make sure that some professional records it. Even if its Weigh****chers or Curves, better off someone with medical affiliation, like Jewish Hospital's program. That way after 6 mos, you'll probably have their support when you want to pursue surgery. Next, in the meantime, get all the documentation you can on the procedure you choose. If you haven't yet, start researching all the procedures. You might entirely change your mind like I did when I started researching. When you approach your doctor, be it the same PCP or a new one, first of all, remember that YOU are the customer. Tell them that only 3% of morbidly obese people will be able to keep their weight off through conventional means (diet/exercise). With your track records, you're definitely in the majority, and you're ready to make a drastic change that will work. Show them the confidence you have in this solution, show them what you have learned, and nod and smile when they give you the "you still have to diet/exercise" lecture, and say that you're excited to know that with this surgery, that your diet/exercise efforts will finally be successful! Act all revved up and don't take no for an answer. That should give you something to do between now and then!

I had to search again for your post to tell you about my solution to heel spurs. You totally need to get some Birkenstock shoes. You can get them for a fraction of the cost at ebay.com....or if Payless shoes is kind to us, they will stock Tulas, a Birkenstock brand, like they did last summer. They have changed my life, foot-wise. Now they're all I'll wear. Here's the ebay site. http://clothing.attr-search.ebay.com/birkenstock_Womens-Shoes_9_W0QQa35322ZQ2d24QQa47ZQ2d24QQa53Z22810QQa54ZQ2d24QQa94ZQ2d24QQalistZa54Q2ca55Q2ca53Q2ca47Q2ca94Q2ca3801Q2ca35322QQcatrefZC6QQcoactionZcompareQQcoentrypageZsearchQQcopagenumZ1QQfposZ45102QQfromZR10QQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQftrtZ1QQftrvZ1QQgcsZ1100QQpfZShowQ20ItemsQQpf_queryZbirkenstockQQpfidZ1273QQpfmodeZ1QQsacatZ63889QQsadisZ200QQsargnZQ2d1QQsaslcZ2QQsbrftogZ1QQsofocusZpf It's in my size, but go to the left and change it to your size.

Valerie, Thanks for the game plan. We have a curves right down the road. Ill call them tomorow. I currently have $300 inserts bought from the "good Feet Store" they help, which is to say I can walk around for a couple of hours without wanting to cry, still can not stand still for any length of time tho. I went to ebay to check on Berks in my size (11) 1 pair and man they were horrid. LoL I have found that WHITE MOUNTAIN shoes give me some relief as well. I got a call today from WV bariatrics clinis today and we discussed my situation. She told me to get to a Doc asap to start the documenting. She did not seem to think the pre-existing condition thing would matter. Not that I will be going to WV, I live an hour from Cleve and Akron and 10 minutes from youngstown. Much closer options.