Need Info........

I am wanting to go to Centennial Medical Center for my surgery but there was an exclusion in my insurance. Does anyone know about self pay there? How much? Financing? Or does any one have any advice for me as I look to start my journey to the losing side. Someone please help with anything. I am gonna have Lap RNY done. Thanks in advance.

Hi Matthew! I am 3 wks post op and had surgery at Centennial Medical Center. My surgeon is Dr. Hugh Houston. Hes an excellent surgeon and I highly recommend him. I havent gotten statements from my insurance yet so i'm not sure what things cost, but have heard a good starting figure is $20,000. Most surgeons will give a reduced rate and payment plan for anyone paying out of pocket, I know Dr. Houston does. As for the hospital, i'd call Centennial's billing office and inquire there. Please let me know if I can help you in any way! Best of luck to you in your journey and God bless!! Melanie

Hi Matthew, I am 2 weeks post op Lap RNY at CMC. My surgeon was also Dr Hugh Houston. He is WONDERFUL! I did receive my bill from the hospital. 24,460.00 My Surgeon's bill 5880.00 Im sure you might have a cut rate price because of being a self pay... but here's some figures you can start with. I follow Melanie's advise..... call over to Dr Houston's office at CMC an talk to one of their financial counselors. Richard Meeks Lap RNY 6/7/04

Hey there Richard, how are ya doing? Gimme an update! Hope things are well. I'll be 4 wks on Tuesday and moving right along. If you're 2 wks PO you must be starting pureed. Take my advice and stick to smooshy. I ate fish and chicken, but chewed till there was almost nothing left and it hurt my stomach. Made me very nausous. So I'm eating a lot of mashed potatoes and refried beans. Good luck! Let me know how you're doing. God bless! Melanie

Matthew, I am not trying to be a negative perspective but only a word of caution to really research this stuff. I experienced the same issue and looked into self pay (and I was not able to qualify for TN-Care as I made to high of an income) but it was not an option for me for several reasons: 1. I could not finance all of the money through some of the "medical finance" companies for the surgery. There are some that will do 60% or so (check the web). 2. This is a caution that any conditions that arise can be closely scrutinized and if they are tied to an "excluded" procedure, insurance companies may refuse to pay. 3. A lot of times, certain fees were needed up front so you have to have some money secured a lot of times. In my research, I found the average costs between $27,000 - $40,000 for the surgery with no complications in the Nashville area. My personal experience was that I experienced post-operative breathing complications (spent a night in ICU and was on oxygen for 2 days 24 hrs a day) and my bill from Centennial was about $57,000 for all hospital costs and my surgeon billed about $7000. I also had some additional bills from a pulmanologist that had to see me while in ICU and a separate bill from anesthesia. I actually ended up having to change jobs to get an insurance policy that I knew covered the surgery if medical necessity was met and that was the only way I could have had this done for me. Just make sure that you research all of this very carefully and look at alternative funding sources as well. A lot of people have examined that stuff and can tell you what they have done but make sure that you are clear on what the financial expectations are for you. This can be the equivalent of financing a major life purchase and the max that a lot of medical finance companies will do is 5-10 years. Hang in there and best of luck on your journey!