NLIC.org

Sonia Said:

insurance companies in NJ that cover bariatric surgery?

We Answered:

I have two answers: one for where you might find insurance and one about bariatric surgery. The short answer for where you can find health insurance is: it depends. You can find coverage through most health insurance companies, but most private insurers include riders on their standard policies that deny coverage for bariatric surgery. According to a New Jersey Work Group report on bariatric surgery, HMOs in the state must include coverage for bariatric surgery. I’ve included a link to the report, which also alludes to Medicare/Medicaid changing its stance on coverage for this procedure. It wasn’t until this year that Medicare/Medicaid considered obesity an illness and expanded coverage for obesity treatment. The next link in the sources section is to a New Jersey HMO report card rating HMOs in the state.

The above answerer quotes an interesting article from a medical group that specializes in obesity treatment. You’re kind of lucky that you are looking for treatment in New Jersey because the state conducted an in-depth study into how well bariatric surgeries are being executed. This was in response to the fact that the number of procedures increased by almost 10 times in just five years. I’ve linked to the press release describing the results of the Work Group study. Although they did not recommend any strict rules for where to go for treatment, they did say that a successful bariatric program “would perform at least 125 surgeries a year, with each surgeon having a lifetime experience of at leat 125 procedures.” The report also goes on to say that a good program would include a physician medical director for bariatric surgery.

You might want to use the above criteria to find doctors that you’d want to perform the procedure. I’ve included a link to a list of New Jersey doctors who specialize in bariatric surgery. Then you can see what health insurance the work with and go from there. I would also speak to health insurance agents in your area. Chances are, they’ve fielded your question before and can quickly help you out. Try MostChoice.com. You can review different plans and speak to multiple agents without any cost or obligation.

You can find MostChoice here: http://www.mostchoice.com/health-insuran…

Hope this helps
Barnes@MostChoice

Sheila Said:

does anyone know a loop hole to get Bariatric Surgery?

We Answered:

Okay, first of all, lapband is not for everyone and has some SERIOUS side effects and dangers. People lose way too much weight, way too quickly with this procedure and that causes many health issues in their future.

Second, 1 month of working out and watching what you eat is barely a blip on the radar. I know it feels so hard to do, but it is not anywhere near long enough to see significant results. I know you are feeling urgency and want to get the weight off... but you need to think about the rest of your body. Your body is an extremely complex machine that needs all kinds of vitamins, minerals, acids and even foreign metals to function properly. The amount that you can eat after lapband is NOT enough to fulfill these needs. You have treated yourself badly, you have gained a lot of weight... so you need to focus on healing your body, not forcing it to dump fat. You need to fix your diet... and STICK TO IT! For many, many months! It's a slow process! You need to keep up the exercise... don't quit. You will be so much healthier and this will fix many of your health concerns... lapband will NOT prevent your health issues... it will merely starve your body into weight loss, not make you fit and healthy.

Laurie Said:

I have a question about going back and forth between insurance companies?

We Answered:

It is possible if you get a job with benefits that cover the surgery because group policies must accept you. Few individual policies cover bariatric surgery anymore. Those that do will not accept anyone heavy enough to qualify for the surgery. The PCOS alone will be a decline with most companies in my state.

Ken Said:

Does anyone know of a medical insurance company that covers bariatric surgery procedures?

We Answered:

Most insurance companies cover the procedure, as long as the employer group you are covered through elected for the procedure to be covered. So, if your insurance is through your job, its not up to the insurance company. It is actually a choice made by the employer group.

If you are buying private health insurance, you can probably get the procedure covered as an addition to the policy... But, you have to pay a bunch for it.

Nicole Said:

What insurance companies cover bariatric surgery?

We Answered:

possess as much information as you could maybe is one of the options,however it is quite time consuming,here

www.HealthInsuranceIdeas.info

is the resource i have ever had good experience.