Question:
Is surgery in November instead of April worth paying $4000 for?
I have a surgery date set in late November with a surgeon that is not "in-network" with my insurance, so it will probably cost me $4000 out of pocket. This is a significant amount, but do-able with a lot of effort. I have spoken to another surgeon's office who say they can do the surgery most likely in April for me, but they are in network, so the cost will only be about $1500 out of pocket (due to the insurance deductible for the year 2003). I don't know if I'm being selfish by wanting to get on the road to good health sooner, at a tune of $2500 more, though. Please give me advice! Thank you. — Christine In AZ (posted on November 2, 2002)
November 2, 2002
I checked your profile, no indication on there of your co-morbidities. Do
you feel you CAN wait, I mean, medically speaking??? I am lucky because I
am doing this surgery to avoid any further health problems, but right now I
can wait until January, which means I will have disability coverage through
my job (a luxury I currently do not have). I cannot afford to be out of
work for 6 weeks with no income. It's a very personal decision. How is
your health? Only you can decide. Good luck, girlfriend. I'm here for
you.
— RedHeadBeauty
November 2, 2002
I don't think you're being selfish, we all want to have our surgery ASAP!!
If your surgery was scheduled for late November, April is only 5 months
away. If you waited until then, you could save that hard earned $2500.00
and even put a portion of it away to buy yourself some new
"skinny" clothes or treat yourself to a day at a spa when you
join the century club, etc. There are many things you could do with that
money, and I know it's hard to wait, but maybe it would be for the best.
It is up to you, this is just my opinion. Here in Canada the waiting lists
are soooooo long, and I have waited 22 months, just shy of 2 years for my
RNY which will be on Monday. I know the waiting game really sucks. LOL.
Hope everything works out for you. Hugs,
— Kim S.
November 2, 2002
If I could swing the extra $2500, I'd definitely do it now! But that is
just me- I'm very impatient!! I am scheduled for Tues. 11-5, which means I
will be looking pretty darn good next summer ;) You could be too! No
matter what you decide, I'm sure it will turn out great! Good luck!
— Charree K.
November 2, 2002
I would do it this year for one reason only...this year your insurance
seems to be covering it - are you sure they will still be doing so next
year? Just my 2cents!
— [Deactivated Member]
November 2, 2002
for one point, you will still have that deductable next year whether or not
you have surgery this year. So you will be saving the full $4,000.
However, with the way the insurance company keeps changing the rules, or us
losing our jobs, if it were me I would surely pay the $4,000.
— faybay
November 2, 2002
Christine, here is my two cents. First, if it were NOT a monetary issue,
WHO DO YOU FEEL MOST COMFORTABLE WITH? Which dtr to you trust? What is
$4K ? A little sacrafice? I would go with the dtr you feel most
comfortable with and I would do it now instead of later. Ins rules are
changing everyday and I wouldn't bank on anything 6 mos from now. Good
Luck with your decision. P.S. You will easily save $4K on eating along in
the next yr (at least i have).
— heathercross
November 3, 2002
Christine,
Please do it now if you are comfortable with the surgeon and his staff. I
just would not trust the insurance to be still covering it after the fist
of the year. Do it while you are covered. I was approved in May and then
got a letter of denial in July just 8 days before my surgery date. Have
been fighting ever since. I switched insurance, it will go thru Jan 1st.
I am praying that they don't make any surprise changes in the new year.
This has been very devastating to me, waiting, waiting, waiting. If you
like the surgeon and think that this is the time, DO IT!
Susan Wagner
— Susan W.
November 3, 2002
If it were me, I would get the surgery as soon as possible. I mean it will
cost you an extra $2500, but I think it is worth it. I know I have wasted
that much money on diet programs and pills. I do not call this wasting
money- I call it an investment. About the insurance-I would not take the
risk-once approved I would never do anything that might cause them to
reconsider. Good Luck
— Jan S.
November 3, 2002
Get it done next year. Save the money for new clothes. You'll need it.
— Goldilauxx B.
November 4, 2002
Go with the in-network doc. If you stay in-network there is an out of
pocket limit that you can't go over. If the doctor is out of network there
is no limit to how much he charges. He may say $4,000 now and then change.
I started with an out of network doc. He gave me a price of $8,500 then
once I was able to come up with that he increased the price to $18,500
before surgery. I have BCBS PPO. My out of pocket limit is $2,000. If I
stay in network, no matter what I won't have to pay over that. And what if
you have complications this could get really expensive for you really
quickly. Stay In-network if you can. Waiting is just part of this process.
— Kimmie C.
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