Waiting for approval is torture! Tricare-gastric bypass

  • How long should this take? I have been stalking my insurance website like a crazy ex girlfriend. It was submitted last Thursday and its still pending today. I go tomorrow for my EGD which is my final appointment before surgery April 16th. I so scared I wont be approved and the last 5-6 months would have been for nothing.
  • No experience with Tricare, but I think everyone gets nervous about approval. I was worried a week ago, and here I am scheduled for surgery on Monday!

    For regular insurance (non-military) I was told that they have up to 30 days to respond but typically do within 7-10 business days. So maybe look at that for your goal before a big time panic?

    I'm hopeful for you!!!
  • I'm having it done by a civilian surgeon in Allentown PA. Yea, I'll give it 7-10 days before I start to panic. Thanks
    Dr. just called, they found multiple stones in my gallbladder so they are going to remove it when they do the gastric bypass. I'm guessing thats better than having issues later and needing a separate surgery later.
  • My mom waited well over 6 months to have surgery in Philadelphia, PA. I know that part of it was the insurance company, but I think it was mostly because they had told her that she was too large to safely do the surgery and her insurance company at the time (we are all uninsured now, unfortunately) told her that her weight was too much of a risk and that any problems from the surgery would be too costly so she spent a lot of that time trying to come down into a health-ier weight range for the anesthesia.
  • I got an answer back from insurance. They want me to see a pulmonary dr, cardiologist, EKG, chest X-ray and more blood work. I had. Hard time finding a pulmonary dr to see me before May, I literally called 8 different places until someone had an opening on March 28th. My surgery is April 16 so I hope that is enough time to get clearance and resubmit to my I insurance company. This is all discouraging but I can't let it stop me.
  • good grief. that's a lot of hoops to jump through in such a short time. it's possible - and i really don't like to say this - that your surgery might have to be rescheduled. What does your surgeon say about this new round? he MIGHT <fingers crossed> be able to figure out a way to get this all done and approved before hte surgery date.
  • My surgeons office wasn't very helpful, the pulmonary dr they deal with cant get me in until after my surgery date. I asked them if I could just start calling every dr around and that's what I did. The cardiologist office is supposed to call me tomorrow, hopefully I can get in ASAP. I think the EKG, chest X-ray, and blood work will be easy.