The Cost Of Lap Band Surgery

The cost of lap band surgery, which is a popular form of obesity surgery today, varies considerably and costs depend upon such things as where your procedure is performed, the surgical team you use and whether your operation is performed as an in-patient (with an overnight stay in hospital) or as a day-patient (with surgery being carried out in the morning and you returning home later the same day). In addition, you will also need to figure in the cost of follow-up care, including such things as adjustments to your band.

So, where do you start when it comes to figuring out the cost of lap band surgery?

The first thing you must do is to talk to your doctor to find out whether or not you are a suitable candidate for lap banding. This might seem obvious, but many people simply assume that as long as they are obese (with a BMI in excess of 40 or slightly lower than 40 with accompanying health problems) then this form of surgery is open to them. However, this is not always the case and some patients will find that their doctor recommends an alternative form of surgery.

Assuming that you are a suitable candidate, the next thing to do is to check to see whether or not your health insurance covers the cost of lap band surgery. You will need to read through the details of your health insurance coverage carefully and it is often also a good idea at this stage to talk to your insurance company. If you are covered then the terms of your insurance plan may well be the determining factor when it comes to such things as where your lap band surgery must be performed and which surgeons are available to you.

If lap band costs cannot be met from insurance then things become a little bit more difficult because you need to think about how much you can afford to pay, where that money is going to come from and where you need to go to find treatment within your available finances.

Top of your list however should undoubtedly be finding a suitable bariatric surgeon and surgical team. Experience is a very significant factor in the success of lap band surgery (and in lap band cost in terms of complications and follow-up treatment) and we cannot stress too highly the importance of finding the right surgeon. Talk to your own doctor and do your research to get as much information as you can and draw up a shortlist of surgeons who are currently routinely performing lap band stomach surgery and who have a good and reasonably long track record of doing so. And do not limit yourself to looking for surgeons in your own local area, but throw your net as wide as possible and consider surgeons throughout the country and indeed abroad as well.

Once you have your list of surgeons you can then start looking at costs and you will find that these vary considerably from state to state and between the USA and overseas hospitals and surgical centers. Remember too to take into account the cost of traveling to have your surgery.

Many people are nervous when it comes to contemplating treatment abroad but it should be borne in mind that lap banding has been performed abroad in many cases for a lot longer than it has in the United States. For example, you will find that there are many excellent facilities employing very skilled surgeons in many countries including Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, India, Italy, Mexico, Sweden, Switzerland and Thailand.

At the end of the day you will often find that having your procedure performed close to home is the best bet, not least because your surgeon is close at hand to provide follow-up care and to deal with any problems which might arise. However, if the difference in cost between having the procedure close to home or overseas is significant, then financing decisions may have to drive your final decision.

When it comes to meeting the cost from your own pocket then there are several options open to you the first of which is to simply pay the bill in cash, perhaps raising the necessary funds by dipping into your savings, selling off some stocks or using your 401K. Where this is not possible and you are still left with a shortfall then you will need to look at either funding the difference through such things as credit card accounts or loans. Before going down this road however you should talk to your surgeon because many hospital and surgical facilities are only too well aware of the problems faced by many patients and will often have access to a range of funding programs.

Do not forget too that it may be possible to get assistance from the federal government by way of tax savings. IRS Publication 502 allows you to deduct medical expenses in certain circumstances and this means that in the year in which your lap band surgery is performed you may well be able to get a very substantial discount on your surgery in the form of a tax saving.

The one thing which we have not mentioned so far is any specific dollar figure because, as we said at the start, lap band surgery cost really does vary very widely. However, a ball park figure (including such things as hospital or surgery center charges, surgeon's fees and anesthesiologist's fees) can be expected to range from about $12,000 to $30,000.

One final point which we should make is that there is also a cost to not having surgery. Again this is difficult to put a figure to and will vary from one person to the next, but when you take into account such things as medical and drug costs, weight loss program fees and grocery and dining fees to support your current diet you might be surprised to find that it is generally agreed that the added cost of obesity for most people comes to about $15,000 every year. Against this the one-time cost of lap band surgery might not seem all that high.

More articles about gastric bypass surgery:

How Does The Sleeve Gastrectomy Work? - The vertical sleeve gastrectomy is a purely restrictive form of weight loss surgery which is particularly suited to extremely overweight patients or to patients whose existing medical condition prevents them from undergoing other forms of morbid obesity surgery.

Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Band Is The Newest And Safest Option - Although laparoscopic adjustable gastric band surgery has only been approved for use in the US since 2001, it is a popular weight-loss surgery option and is undoubtedly the safest form of bariatric surgery available today.

Vertical Gastrectomy Stomach Surgery - Vertical gastrectomy stomach surgery can be especially useful for patients with a very high BMI and for lower BMI patients who may be unable to undergo other forms of weight loss surgery for a variety of different reasons.

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