Anthem BCBS Members.. How long did your insurance take before approving your surgery?

For Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield members, I'd like to know how long it took you to get your insurance to cover your surgery once all of your paperwork was complete? It doesn't seem like it will be a big hassle to get covered considering I meet requirements from what I understand. I only have one more paper to get turned in and I'm anxious to get my date set. What was your time frame between your seminar and your surgery? I realize all surgeons and facilities are different but I'd like an idea.

I called BCBS to ask how it works bcs I was trying to get my surgery in before year end 2014, and they told me that once they get the information from the doctor, they have 14 days to make a decision.   If there is any missing information or anything, they may have to reject it and the 14 days would start again when the info is corrected/resubmitted.   I had a great nurse case manager who approved my surgery in just a couple days.  

That's interesting. My wellness center told me the insurance could hold paper work for up to 30 days before they even had to touch it!

My surgeon's office told me repeatedly that insurance had 30 days, so I was very pleasantly surprised when BCBS told me their policy is 14 days, and thrilled when it actually happened in just a couple of days.  Hope your approvals go just as smoothly as mine did.  

Every insurance company is different; the easiest thing to do is call and ask them how long it generally takes.

I attended my seminar in early September, and had surgery December 10. That included 2 months of supervised weight loss with my doctor. I have BCBS AZ, and it took two weeks for my paperwork to be approved.

Once all paperwork was turned in took 1 day.   I was 3 months exactly from 1st meeting to surgery 

I do realize everyone's will vary but it's still nice to get a round about idea of what to expect. My insurance doesn't require the diet plan so that's a plus. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I know my records have to show a history of weight struggles and weight loss attempts. I've tried for years to lose the weight on my own but I'm not sure if my past 2 years of medical records will have noted what I've actually done since it wasn't doctor supervised. I did provide a list of the diets and plans that I've tried so that he could hopefully include them in his support letter. I contacted him over 2 weeks ago and have checked in several times and he still hasn't completed it. It's beyond frustrating!!

Mine took 3 days. I work for a doctors office and we like to give our patients the worse case scinerio. The truth is, it takes the doctors office more time to prepare and send your paperwork than it takes for the insurance to approve. You can call your insurance company at anytime to find out the status of the authorization. 

2 Days