Bummer - no obesity coverage AT ALL

After a few back and forth phone calls and several re-reads of my insurance exclusion policy it is confirmed - they do not cover any type of obesity treatment at all. Crazy, I know. I know it's just the plan that I'm on - not necessarily the insurance company. I have the same company (Humana) that approved a breast reduction 2 years ago, and if they'd approve that they'd approve this.

Again- it is my particular plan level, not the main insurance co - an important distinction to remember. I have the option of upgrading but I"m going to wait and see what the new year brings in terms of promotion at work, husband's potential new job, etc. I only just started thinking about this so I'm not very far down the track at all.

Financing certainly is an option - my car is paid off in July and that monthly bit of budget could easily go towards this.

If you've financed - how did you do it? Regular credit cards, personal loan, cosmetic credit?

 
I went to Mexico and wrote a check... twice.  Ugh.  But well worth the results.  I started out with a band and revised to a sleeve.

What surgery type are you considering?

 
BTW, might want to check out my blog and see HOW to research a MX or US surgeon.  I don' have one for bypass or DS yet.

wasabubblebutt.blogspot.com/2010/03/researching-mexican-or-us-sleeve.html

I would prefer the sleeve.

 
Sleeves and Mexico go hand in hand and i'll explain why.

If you were to get a band in MX in some states it can be hard to find aftercare.  Same with bypass. But with a sleeve you are not dependent on a bariatric surgeon.  Let's say the worst case scenario, you spring a leak.  You can go to any GI surgeon, any general surgeon, or any non band mill bariatric surgeon, our choices are huge where other surgery types are limited for aftercare.

And really, you don't need aftercare for a sleeve.  You need annual labs that your PCP can do and you email the results to your surgeon.

Weight loss is great, it's the safest surgery type long term, and it is maintenance free.  I absolutely love my sleeve.  If you have any questions about it please let me know!

Personal loan or refinancing your house if you own one are two good possible options. Luckily for me I got a loan from my dad but I was prepared to refinance my house in order to do this.

Hopefully you will be able to figure something out :-) Good luck

Valerie

Thanks for the info and input. I wouldn't refinance my house for this, but the cost would be less than what I paid for my car, so it's not super scary from a debt perspective.

The investigation continues...

Although I dont know which ones are good and which ones are not there are healthcare financing orgs...

http://www.carecredit.com/

http://healthcarecreditline.com/

Best of luck to you!!!