People with obesity may deal with comorbid conditions, such as diabetes, sleep apnea, osteoarthritis, dyslipidemia, and other conditions. To improve their health and diminish such conditions, many people opt to have gastric sleeve surgery. In this bariatric procedure, surgeons reduce the size of patients’ stomachs, limiting their calorie intake. Reducing the size of the stomach allows it to feel full faster and helps people feel satiated and have a decreased appetite.
Surgeons perform gastric sleeve surgery laparoscopically, meaning the operation is minimally invasive and requires small incisions. The recovery period following this surgeon is quicker compared to open surgeries. Typically, patients remain in inpatient recovery for two days.
Sleeve surgery is an irreversible surgery, as it consists of the removal of the stomach pouch. Unlike a gastric bypass, a more invasive surgery, this procedure doesn’t require implanted devices or changes to the digestive pathway.
Patients who adhere to appropriate dieting and exercising can lose half of the excess weight within one to three years. When seeking sleeve surgery, people should consult a reliable bariatric surgery practice, such as Bariatric Associates, P.A. This surgery practice utilizes surgical and non-surgical advancements in bariatric medicine to guide patients to lose weight and lead healthy lifestyles. Dr. Valeriu E. Andrei and the expert team at Bariatric Associates, P.A., are well-versed in surgical and non-surgical options of bariatric medicine and understand that there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to patients’ weight loss journeys.
This impactful procedure can be expensive. Without insurance, it could cost patients less than or more than $20,000 to have sleeve surgery. A patient’s insurance status can be a crucial deciding factor in the choice to pursue the operation. Insurance coverage can help people afford weight-loss surgeries. Health insurance can cover the cost of the procedure, treatment, and any follow-up visits. If complications arise, insurance can help people pay for additional treatment.
The Current Population Survey’s Annual Social and Economic Supplement (CPS ASEC) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau revealed that 25.6 million Americans didn’t have health insurance in 2017. The next year saw this figure increase; in 2018, 27.5 million Americans lacked insurance.
Americans in need of insurance coverage or those seeking a new plan to replace their old one can find affordable individual and family plans, private plans, short-term plans, catastrophic plans, and others with Health Quote Gurus. Such coverage options are affordable solutions for individuals and families who need coverage in cases of surgeries or medical catastrophes such as illnesses, injuries, and accidents. Health Quote Gurus provides insurance-seekers with solutions to their coverage needs and enables them to compare health plans.
When comparing and searching for different insurance options, people should keep their family’s medical and financial needs in mind. Insurance-seekers initiating a weight loss journey should consider an insurance provider’s requirements for gastric sleeve surgery.
The requirements for sleeve surgery may vary for different insurance companies and across different states. Sleeve surgery requirements can impact the length of the approval process. Before approving, insurance providers require patients to have proof of eligibility for sleeve surgery and submit a letter of medical necessity. Patients should visit, doctors, nutritionists, and psychiatric professionals to have physical and mental evaluations before seeking approval from an insurance provider. Professionals may perform psychiatric evaluations, as well. Assessments allow professionals to determine a person’s fitness and eligibility for surgery.
People should maintain pre-surgery healthy habits such as regular dieting and exercise. Adherence to exercise and diet plans can help demonstrate someone’s readiness to achieve weight loss and sustain healthy lifestyle changes following sleeve surgery. Patients should keep in mind that the risks associated with surgery increase depending on the degree of obesity. For this reason, insurance companies may demand a patient lose weight and require evidence of six months’ compliance with dietary and exercise plans before approving surgery.
The approval process for gastric sleeve surgery could take up to a year. Approval decisions depend on the insurance company’s specific requirements and the patient’s weight and medical circumstances.
