Help!! Need to know how to write an appeal letter.

My insurance is Paramount Flex. It is written in their handbook that no form of weight loss help is covered. I want to know if it is worth trying to fight them or not. I have no clue where to begin! I don't know what to say in an appeal letter. Any help that anyone could give me would be appreciated! Melinda McCreery

Melinda If the insurance company have a written policy that they donot cover weight loss surgery, the best thing that you can do is to get your doctor to write a statement on your behalf including all the medical reason why this surg would help you. Try everything before give up, after all you paid good money for this insurance, they work for you, not the other way around. Margie H/Va

I think fighting for this surgery is always worth it. I am currently going thru this with a friend of mine. Her husband's company has the same exclusion written into their insurance. She has been thru the appeals process and was still denied but we haven't given up yet. Now I don't know if this will help you or not but this is some of what we're doing now...first she went to the HR rep at the company (her husband's employer) who seems to be on her side now and wants to help her fight this battle. During this process, she has gone to support group meetings and during a meeting she met a woman who's son works for one of the state representative's and he's now making calls to the committee that makes the decisions about what goes into the insurance policy and what doesn't. They are trying to get the company to make an exception for my friend. In the meantime, I have been asking everyone I know in our state, to write letters talking about how surgery improved their lives. Things like, medical problems that had that improved, medications they use to take that they got to give up...that sort of thing. My intentions are to pass these to my friends employer, the insurance company, and any political person whos address I can get (I just happen to work in the federal bldg and can hand deliver a few). The longer term thing we want it to get it into law that the surgery has to be approved for those that medically need it. I don't know how far we'll get, oh yeah and now we are also putting together a petition as well, but those are just some of the things we're going for at this point....so just don't give up the fight! If any of this works for us here, I'll definitely post some details.