Hello 3FC community


My wife is seriously considering bariatric surgery, and I completely support her in this decision. The only thing is that according to our insurance policy info, they will not cover weight loss surgery. As this is a really expensive procedure, how are you guys able to pay for this? Out of pocket? Insurance? FSA?

Thanks.

this is always a tough question to deal with. Most of us were covered by our insurance. However, quite a few haven't been. Here are some of the possibilities:

• self-pay [often through refinancing a mortgage] in the US
• using the surgeon's lender [most of them have financing programs available]
• FSA is always a possibility, but with the caps, it's doubtful that you'll be able to sock away enough money for the surgery before you have to either spend it or lose it
• medical tourism - surgery is definitely cheaper in Mexico and India, even with the travel involved. HOWEVER, before you go, you MUST arrange someone local to followup with care. And many surgeons won't touch another's patient.