Is this too easy? - Page 5 - ThinnerTimes

doxielover · 05-23-2008, 12:07 PM

My surgeon's office submitted my paperwork to Healthnet HMO (California) on May 16th, and I was APPROVED on May 21st! Now my surgery date of June 24th is a reality and not just wishful thinking. I feel so blessed that this process and been so easy compared to the hell that others have faced. It was exactly 41 days from my first visit with my PCP until surgery approval. You no longer have to complete a six month diet in California and evidently the documentation that Dr. Waldrep's insurance guru sent in was plenty. My bmi was 41 the first time I saw Dr. Waldrep and I have high blood pressure and severe degenertive disk disease (I have had 11 lumbar epidural injections in the last 4 years). I did not have to provide documented proof of my participation in LA Weight Loss or Weight Watchers, however on the 39 page patient history I filled out, I listed every diet and died medication I have taken since 1986. From 1979 until 2003 I was a Kaiser member and in 2003 I switched to Healthnet because my daughter left home for college and Heathnet was a better option for her in Southern California. What a good thing that I switched insurances! Kaiser patients in Northern California still have to travel to the Bay Area to have bariatric surgery even though there are three major Kaiser hospitals in Sacramento. So much for my long story. I can now highly recommend Healthnet HMO to people who think that they might want to have bariatric surgery - this process has been awesome.