Contadicting Info- PLEASE HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!

Please Help!!!!!!!! Well my surgeons office said the things I need to get the surgery were as follows through my insurance but insurance says differently: Psych Eval 6 month nut eval/ PCP visit with documentation of vists of weight. Letter of Med Nece. My insurance said: 12 months diet history Psych eval BMI of 40+

I am confused.....very very confused. DO I just satart my nut appoints and do 6 months? Or do I have to do 12 months? The other two are easy to do. I have a refferal to see a sleep test. and I'm checking with my surgeon to see who they use for psych eval. I don't want to do the wrong thing, I have records that I wasdoing ww, and keeping track of things, I also have a list of all diets, I have been through. Do I just do 6 months and turn everything in a wish for the best.

Do exactly what your Surgeon's office tells you to do. They work directly with the Insurance company's representative who deals with Bariatric Surgeries as you calling the Insurance company, you don't know who your talking to within the phone bank your call is answered at. I had three years of Weigh****cher records and still had to do the 6 months of dictor dicumented supervised diet. It's not to get you to lose weight even though every bit helps. It's to prove you can stick to a regimented diet such as the Post-op eatting procedure. My surgeon had me follow the Post-op eating habits of just proteins at which I lost 60 pounds prior to my surgery date. Make sure your Primary Doctor is recording these monthly visits in your records. My first PCP didn't and I had to find another doctor who would record it like the insurance company wanted.  Good Luck, Mike 

There are two distinct sides to what happens pre-op -- the medical side which is what your surgeon requires to make sure you are ready for surgery and to keep you healthy and then there is the admin side -- which is what the insurance company wants to process your preapproval. In this case because your surgeons requirements seem more stringent than your insurance requirements -- you have to go with the surgeon. Surgeons have differing protocols concerning pre-op requirements. Of course you can always change surgeons. The sleep study is a critical part of your pre-surgery workup and one that many surgeons require. Undiagnosed sleep apnea is very dangerous when one is under anesthesia. The surgeon will probably have many pre-op tests you will have to do. That is the medical side of the equation. You might want to take a look at this video press release from the American Society of Anesthesiologist. (click on the link in the middle of page that was video press release)  http://www.asahq.org/patientEducation/apnea.htm Red

Once again, you hit the nail on the head! Couldn't have stated it better.

Kristen