What Is The Cost Of Lap Band Weight Loss Surgery?

Anybody who is contemplating lap band surgery will almost certainly have a list of questions and quite high up on that list is going to be the question of price. Unfortunately, although this might appear to be a simple question, it is not quite so easy to answer.

The price of having lap band weight loss surgery depends upon several different things but first you have to establish whether or not you qualify for surgery. Deciding that you need or want lap band surgery is all well and good but when it comes to paying for surgery whether or not you meet the criteria of the National Institutes of Health (NHI) is a crucial factor.

As a rule, if you have a body mass index of 40 or more you will automatically meet the requirements of the NHI. You could also qualify if your BMI falls between 35 and 39 provided you are also suffering from a serious medical problem which is related to your weight. The list of related medical conditions is long but will include such things as high cholesterol, diabetes or high blood pressure.

If you do not meet the NHI criteria then you will need to meet the full cost of lap band surgery yourself.

The next thing which you have to examine is whether or not your health insurance plan will pay for all or part of the cost of surgery. It is commonly thought that insurance companies will not pay for weight loss surgery but this is not the case and health insurers are increasingly funding either some or all of the bill for lap band surgery. However, your insurance company will only fund the cost if you meet the requirements of the NIH and if your doctor certifies that surgery is a medical necessity.

Okay, so how much is lap band surgery going to cost?

The price of lap band surgery is complicated because you need to take into account not simply the cost of surgery itself but the associated costs which will vary considerably according to where surgery is performed and by whom. Costs will include such things as pre-op tests, fees for your surgeon and hospital fees. In addition, there will be various post-operative fees for services such as medical visits, psychological support and nutritional counseling.

Where surgery is carried out in the US then you might reasonably expect it to run from $17,000 to $30,000 for surgery and post-surgical care provided you do not encounter any complications. Although major complications are rare they do crop up every so often and the cost may then rise dramatically.

Where surgery is carried out outside of the US then the price will be lower and you might expect it to run between $11,000 and $16,000. Lap band procedures have been done for many years in both Australia and Europe where results have been excellent and is also now being done increasingly in countries such as Brazil, India, Canada, Mexico and the Far East.

Should you be thinking about traveling overseas for weight loss surgery then you will have to add in the cost of travel and post-surgical recovery care which can considerably increase the total cost but still be less expensive than having surgery at home. You will also need to check with your insurance company if applicable as it is unlikely that your insurer will fund the cost of surgery that is carried out overseas. Lastly, you will have to note the fact that you may well have considerably less protection in law should anything go wrong with surgery away from your home country.

In most cases having surgery at home will probably be your safest choice but if the price difference is big enough in your own case then you may well feel that it is worth taking the risk.

GastricBypassFacts.info provides further information on the lap band system and on lap band cost