Question:
TRICARE PRIME ?

YESTERDAY I WENT TO GET A REFERAAL FOR AN OFF POST SURGEON AND THE DOCTOR SAID WELL YOU KNOW THEY DO THE SURGERY HERE I EXPLAINED TO HER YES I KNEW BUT THEY WERE MAKING THINGS HARDER THAN THEY SHOULD BE SHE PUT THE REFERRAL IN BUT I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IS IT GOING TO BE HARD FOR ME TOGET APPROVED FOR AN OFF POST SURGEON SINCE THEY DO THE SURGERY ON POST AND ALSO HOW LONG WILL I TAKE BEFORE TRICARE CONTACTS ME WITH THE APPROVAL TO GO TO THE OFF POST DOC THANKS EVERYONE FOR YOUR SURPPORT    — JENNIFER S. (posted on August 10, 2003)

August 10, 2003
Hello I have Prime too. I was getting tired of the waiting list and all the run around. I had found out from the group some of the other doctors that did the surgery and took Tricare Prime. All you have to do is put in for the referral, It usually takes a week or so. I am in Washington State so that is what I did. But I did have the surgery on base because my surgeon wanted to do the surgery and I had the surgery a month after I asked for the referral and was on the list for over a year. The list at Madigan is really really long.
   — Mechegirl67

August 10, 2003
if they have a military hospital that does wls getting a referal for an offbase doctor will not help. first you pcp writes the referal for you to have wls(just to have the surgery done without saying where at), then if tricare approves it and the waiting list is too long at the military hospital "tricare" is the one that will say if it is ok to go offbase. if your pcp just puts in a referal for an offbase doctor...it will be denied. it happened to me and to other people who tried it that way.
   — franbvan

August 10, 2003
Fran is right. If your local military treatment facility does the surgery, you will have to wait in line with everyone else. Trust me, been there done that. Our waiting list here was YEARS long. We finally got a new surgeon, after a long period of not having one at all. So, I will finally be seen after about 250 other people. It seems unfair, but hey....the surgery is free! A lot of other people want it just as bad as I do, so I have learned patience. Someone told me recently "the weight didn't come overnight, and neither will the surgery." I could not agree with that more. Best of luck to you!
   — AnneK.