Hartford/Long term disability insurance denial!

I am so mad I can't see straight! I had a lap band placed in 2005 and lost 70 lbs. I applied for long term disability insurance with The Hartford Life Ins Co. offered by my employer. I was denied insurance because of the lap band which they stated made me high risk.  I filed and appeal and was again denied. They did acknowlege that losing weight would make me healthier but couldn't insure me because of the surgery. I had the band removed in 2007 due to slippage. I now regained most of my weight back and have a bmi of 36. I have asked for the same policy again with The Hartford and was denied again now because my weight for height is above the recommended.  I just can't win for losing!!! This is so unfair! They stated my weight makes me at risk for heart disease, diabetes, high cholesterol, and hypertension. I do not have any of those comorbidities! What if a person has just hypertension and is not obese? would they deny them? I want to appeal the decision by feel it would probably be futile! What do you guys think?

I actually worked for the Long Term Insurance division of The Hartford and I can tell you that appealing is futile until you have loss the weight.  We had a book of illnesses that were exclusions from the door and then there were some things that made you deniable from the Underwriter's standpoint, and the weight/height ratio was one of those. 

I don't understand one thing though, if the coverage is offered by your employer, why do you have to apply individually?

 Are you having a revision to some other WLS? 

Texas is still one of those states that allows the insurance companies to "black list" individuals.  By the time that I was 20, long before I ever became fluffy, I couldn't get LTD or life insurance unless it was accidental death.  My only suggestion is to turn to Aflac which is what I did - they were more forgiving.  At the time, we believed my only sin was getting a blood clot as a side effect of birth control pills that I no longer took.  You would think, 20 y/o, no pills, no problem, right?  Wrong!  My "skinny" hubby that had high blood pressure had the same problem.  He is uninsurable as well.  FYI - When I ended up self-employed and he ended up working for a small non-profit, we didn't have any group insurance options.  The State of Texas does has a high risk pool for those of us that are otherwise "uninsurable" for regular group health policies.  I hope that you don't ever need it, but it is there if you do.  I hope that this helps.