Many questions- Loving this message board!

I have been reading all the post over the last few days and have been inspired by many. It really helps to read about the life stories and what to expect before and after surgery. I was wondering about a few things. I go to the information seminar this week but I was wanting to do all that I could ahead of time to help speed up the process. In reading many of the post it appears that paperwork is a nighmare! What is the difference in a clearence letter by your PCP and a referal from your PCP? I have BCBS HMO. Are the request for sleep studies, diet history etc on a patient by patient need or are all the request the same for each patient or does it depend on the insurance policy? Who determines what test are needed? I had a physical (March 05)with complete bloodwork as well as a mammo ekg etc. Wonder if the insurance company would take those results instead of me having to do all that again?? Diet history...I was prescribed diet meds for a number of years as well as was a member of a gym..does anyone know if those documented would work for the diet history? Not sure if I have to have that but thought I would go ahead and do the leg work by collecting all those documents ahead of time...? Is the paperwork you get from the seminar really that bad?? Whew...sorry for the mountain of questions. Thanks for all of your help. Everyone has their own story for their weight gain including myself. I hope to one day be able to share it with the group in hopes of helping another as you guys have helped me! I cant check my email listed until in the morning but feel free to email me any thoughts at [email protected]. I can check that one anytime.

IF YOU CAN E-MAIL ME YOUR TELEPHONE I'LL CALL YOU TODAY [email protected]

HI K What is the difference in a clearence letter by your PCP and a referal from your PCP? * I had to get a referal for surgery from my PCP to go see the surgeon; after I got my referal and did all the testing and was ok'd for surgery, my PCP wrote a letter basically telling my insurance company why I needed this surgery. So one letter is for the initial visit to the surgeon, the second one is written to go to your insurance company. I have BCBS HMO. Are the request for sleep studies, diet history etc on a patient by patient need or are all the request the same for each patient or does it depend on the insurance policy? * It depends on your PCP and your surgeon. My insurance (Tricare Prime) basically approves the surgery if your PCP says you need it, but my surgeon required the nutrition visit, sleep study, pulmonologist clearance, psyc visit, etc before he would even see me as a surgical candidate. Who determines what test are needed? *As I answered above, it depends on your PCP and your surgeon AND your insurance company. My PCP for example wouldn't give me my letter stating I needed the surgery until I had completed all my other tests; other PCP's give you the letter without requiring anything. I had a physical (March 05)with complete bloodwork as well as a mammo ekg etc. Wonder if the insurance company would take those results instead of me having to do all that again?? * You will only know by asking them There is some bloodwork that is not normally done that is usually required before they will approve this surgery (for example Thyroid testing). For example if your thyroid comes back as not working (hypothyroid) they will consider you obese because of that or they will have to rule that out before you will be a surgical candidate. Diet history...I was prescribed diet meds for a number of years as well as was a member of a gym..does anyone know if those documented would work for the diet history? Not sure if I have to have that but thought I would go ahead and do the leg work by collecting all those documents ahead of time...? * They gym prolly won't count (but be SURE to check your insurance company to MAKE SURE) Most insurance companies require a MEDICALLY supervised diet - and because of that 'medically' word, it rules out gyms, weigh****chers, Atkins diet, Jenny Craig, etc. Is the paperwork you get from the seminar really that bad?? *I got a pretty thick packet of paper from when I went to my seminar, but I was able to complete most of it online - your milage may vary - each surgeon's office is different. Be sure to give them all the information you can that can help get you approved for surgery - even something tiny that you think wouldn't relate to being obese - for example my sister listed as a co-morbidity her heel spurs and they were added in! Be your OWN advocate and pursue this aggressively if that is what you want. Keep copies of EVERYTHING. Be proactive. Good luck with your journey Kia 284/215/155 ish