Insurance Question

Hi, I am new to the site, I have been considering surgery and wondered if anybody has Loomis Benefits West or Nesika. I have called both and they have told me that WLS is not covered. Any suggestions? Thanks.

Amy, Here in the NW we have totally sucky coverage for WLS! I had two insurance companies (Regence BC/BS HMO Oregon and ODS) who had air tight exclusions for any treatment related to weight - in other words, I could be dying of anorexia or MO, but they still wouldn't pay penny one toward my care. I had five letters of medical necessity from my medical team - still, there was no burden on my insurance carriers to cover WLS because of their exclusion. It totally stinks, but sadly, it's not that unusual. I ended up being a self-pay patient. I went to Spain for my surgery - had one of the leading bariatric surgeons in the world, had an incredibly positive surgical and recovery experience, got to stay a week on the Mediterranean, and enjoy Spain - all for $15,800 - that included travel, surgery - everything! Hey - if you end up going self-pay, there's a new Yahoo group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OSSG-OutofCountryWLS feel free to join us over there and ask questions, etc. And of course, if I can be of any assistance, please let me know! Blessings, dina BPD/DS July 2, 2002 Dr. Aniceto Baltasar in Alcoy, Spain SW: 365 lbs, BMI 64 CW: 177 lbs, BMI 31.5 GW: 130 lbs, BMI 23 Read my story at: http://www.duodenalswitch.com/Patients/Dina/dina.html See my photos in the Photo Gallery at http://www.bodybybaltasar.com/

Hey - I'm another Dina from Oregon! ::grin:: I thought I'd interject that I'm going to be going to see Dr. Alejandro Aguirre in Ensenada, Mexico for my open RNY on March 10th. He charges $8500. Dina

Too cool! So - do you pronounce it DEENA (like me) or DINAH (like seemingly the rest of the world)? That's so cool - running into each other here! Good luck on your surgery. When do you leave for Mexico? I'm actually just getting ready for my next trip to Spain - I'm accompanying a friend for her conversion surgery (Lap-Band to DS). This is my third trip. First time was for my surgery. Second time was for another friend who had a conversion surgery (VBG to DS). I'm really looking forward to it. How you doing? Getting nervous at all? Blessings, dina