How long should it take my surgeon's office to submit my preauthorization?

I am on my last leg here. I really want to change surgeons, but I have already wasted 6 months waiting on the people I'm dealing with now. It took 5 months for me to get an initial consultation with this surgeon. This is not what I was told up front. If I had known this, I would have gone to someone else right off the bat. I was told next month and next month and maybe next month until 5 months passed. So I saw the surgeon and now I am waiting on his office to send the preauthorization info to my insurance company. It has been 3 weeks and they still haven't sent it. I call again and again. They are busy. Sorry. Will get to it soon, etc. etc. They will not schedule surgery for me until they get insurance approval, which won't happen if they never submit the request! I have been laid off from my job and am spending my very limited severance pay on COBRA insurance and waiting for this surgery. I am doing NOTHING but waiting on this surgery and my time is running out. I know a lot of people have to wait a long time to get surgery, but then I read about all these people who have surgery within 2 months of beginning the process and I want to scream. I can't see starting all over at this point. Any suggestions or words of wisdom? I am really, really ticked. Thanks!

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