Costs & Insurance

Insurance approval for weight loss surgery can be a very challenging process. It is very important to work together with the surgical group to prepare a complete and detailed request for approval the first time. It is critical to provide as extensive and detailed diet history as possible. This should include those treatments that have been medically supervised. Also, determine if your insurance company covers “Weight Loss Surgery”. The Providence Regional Bariatric Center and Southwest Surgeons for Obesity and General Surgery will assist you in preparing a letter of medical necessity. We will submit the information to your insurance company. If your surgery is approved, we will need written preauthorization. If it is denied, you may need to send an appeal. Take into consideration that you have only a limited number of appeals.

For a number of insurance companies, we have opted to be out of network. The main reason is their low reimbursement rates, which do not even cover overhead expenses. For this reason we have decided to shift some of the costs to the patient. This will make you responsible for a larger proportion of the surgeon's bill. Details of this cost shifting will vary for different insurance companies and within insurance companies depending on their products. Contact our office for further details.