Derrick or Rachel Elliott?

Hi! I am trying to find out information regarding active duty military and the way they have handled WLS....someone on the main message board suggested I look for Derrick Elliott who may be Navy and his wife Rachel who would be able to answer some questions for me? The person posting was not sure about the names... Thanks! Erin [email protected]

Hey, this is Derek here. Go ahead and ask about active duty WLS. I am one of the few. Derek

Derek...Holy cow I'm glad to talk to you guys! *L* I feel like I'm chasing the albino aligator here. Here's my situation. I had WLS 3 years ago (Aug 7, 2001) and to date I've lost 165 lbs. (my message board pic is really old...I posted new ones on my profile page). I have been trying for almost a year to enlist in the military...it started with the Navy and is currently going with the Marines. I went through the MEPS process, and they have initially declined my medical waiver, but no one seems to know why WLS is an automatically disqualifying factor in enlistment. Someone mentioned to me that they thought TRICARE paid for gastric bypass surgery, and if I could include this type of documentation with my second attempt at waiver (with BUMED) then they might consider it and recommend the waiver. My recruiter said that MEPS denying the waiver initially is pretty common. If a physical problem is listed in the NavMed manual for disqualifyers, MEPS pretty much has to go by the book and automatically decline it, in order to send it up to BUMED. My recruiter also said that all kinds of his recruits have had this happen, with surgeries ranging from ACL surgery to skull injuries that were years old, and as long as you can prove that you are healthy enough to withstand the rigours of basic that they would more than likely approve the waiver at BUMED level, but I have to prove that I am a quality candidate for the military. *take a breath* Ok. So here' s what I need to know. You are ACTIVE duty? I downloaded some info from the TRICARE website, stating how they will pay for obesity surgery, more specifically gastric bypass surgery...but I thought it would be a long shot to find someone who is actually in the military now that has had WLS. If I can provide some sort of evidence that having WLS is not a deterrent to military service (I am working out like a mad woman) and I can pass my IST, then when I present my case to BUMED they will have to say yes. Any and all information you can provide me with would be so divine...you have just made my day. You can email me directly at [email protected] or reply here...either way. Thanks so much! Erin