LAP-BAND® Cost for self pay ??

I am just starting to inquire about LAP-BAND® and was wondering what my approx. cost for the surgery (self pay) in the Dallas area might be ?

I copied this posting from Soonergirl (hope she doesn't mind) I found it by using the search engine located on the top blue bar.

HERE IS SOONERGIRL'S POSTING:
I paid cash in Dallas - 15k with fills for a year.

I highly considered Mexico, but after much math and condieration, we decided to spend the money to have it here. When we started running the math, there wasn't as much $$ difference as you would think.

So, most of the places in Mexico that I would consider were about 10k + flight (about $300) and about at least another 50-75$ in misc. expenses for the trip. If my husband would have gone, add another 400$ or so.

Then, when you take into consideration the fills - with mine in TX, they are included for one year.

If I would have had to go back - $250-300/flight at about 4-5x = another 1-1.5k
If I would have had to pay for fills here - they were about $150 at the least with no floroscopy - mine here includes it.

I have had two fills already and I still am feeling little to no restriction ( I know that most people say that Mexican Dr.s are more aggressive with their fills, but I have 2.8ccs in a band that holds 4ccs, that is not at all conservative), so I would have been recking up fill expenses already.

My biggest concern was aftercare if something were to happen. i am only in my 30s and I am going to have this thing for a long time - long after the Dr.s in Mexico, or here are still practicing. I know that because of liablilty issues and malpractice, it is only going to get harder to find Dr.s that will take a serious complication for a patient that is theirs, much less for a surgery performed out of the country.

SO - as i mentioned, I don't doubt the competency of most of the Dr.s in Mexico - this was just my personal line of reasoning when making my decision.

Good luck!!
__________________
__________________________________
Banded 6/30/05
Dr. Powell
Richardson Surgery Center
196/186.5 day of surgery/174.5/125

After exhausting the insurance route (they said no), I chose self-pay with Dr. Benevides in Richardson. $15K, fills for a year. Worth every penny...my surgery is tomorrow (10/27)

__________________
makena2

48 yo, female, BMI 35, 205, 5'4"

Banded 10/27/05, Dr. Richard Benevides, Richardson
First fill 12/1/05
Second fill 12/14/05

I went to Dr. Sanchez in Monterrey. I took a bus from McAllen to Monterrey, $36 round trip. I paid $7,999 for everything including pretests. Actually as the band gets more and more and common it will be EASIER to locate doctors for fills and adjustments. But I still figure the cost of needing approximatley 3 fills at some later date didnt justify spending an extra $7,000 to $8,000 to have it done in Texas, for me anyway.

__________________


banded
10/27/05
Dr. Sanchez

I was self pay w/Spivak and the 15K did *not* include pre-op testing.
:-(

~Pamela.

__________________
Pamela Moore
Grand Prairie TX
Banded 10/19/05- Dr. Spivak
1st Fill 11/21/05- 2.2cc

Thank you! It's very exciting!

Dr. Spivak only had me do blood work (I had been through the process before) and I went through my PCP so insurance covered it... although, I wonder if it may come back to me? Fingers crossed!

__________________
Pamela Moore
Grand Prairie TX
Banded 10/19/05- Dr. Spivak
1st Fill 11/21/05- 2.2cc

I recommend asking for the names and phone numbers of patients that the patient coordinator took for surgery --- and ONLY patients who were done a year or more earlier. And I recommend taking a companion. If you have a spouse, friend or relative travel with you, they can fly for half-fare with a statement from the doctor. Same with bus and train fares.

Most surgeons have a yahoo group of ther patients and they all can all easily communicate and thus get together to share the company, as well as car, driving & travel expenses to get their fills done.

__________________
Theresa - Orange Grove, Texas
SouthTXLapBand @ aol.com
Reborn (banded) - November 8, 2005
Starting BMI 48
Current BMI 42
1st Mini-Goal BMI 40 ("only" obese)
2nd Mini-Goal BMI 36 (198 pounds)
Goal BMI 26

My journey to goal

tickercentral.com

I am very close to McAllen and there is a doctor that is in Reynosa that my surgeon recommended for fills. I am so familiar with all the bordertowns around here... Matamoros, Progresso, Reynosa, that I think I will just make the 1 hour drive to Reynosa when fill time rolls around. However, if I feel nervous about that Dr. Sanchez goes to Reynosa periodically and said he could arrange a meeting for a fill. I really dont think the fill part is that big of a deal if done under flouroscopy. They had to do a "negative pressure" on me the day after my surgery, which entailed going to x-ray and swallowing barium and having a needle injected into my port to suck out some air. I had some excessive swelling. The doctor gives a tiny shot of deadener first and it was totally painless even while "fresh and raw" from surgery, lol. It was pretty intimidating and a little uncomfortable but in no way painful, so I have no fear of fills at all now (which will be a good thing). I am 6 days out now and sitting here sipping pureed, strained, and very thin cream of mushroom soup. I did come out of surgery HEAVIER by 2 pounds than I went in. I guess your body hangs on to those i.v. fluids for a while. But as of today I am down 4 lbs from my surgery day weight. 4 lbs in 5 days!!!!!!!! I am sure that is due to the liquid part.

__________________


banded
10/27/05
Dr. Sanchez

I'm going self pay in San Antonio through the Wish Center. They have a cash price of 10,950 which includes most of your preop, they just want you to have a recent physical, yearly woman exam, chest xray and a letter from your PCm clearing you health wise for an elective surgery. My surgery date is Dec. 26th!!!

Angie
242/

I HAVE BEEN INQUIRING ALSO, AND IT'S GOING TO BE $15,000 IN THE DFW AREA. IF YOU DO FIND IT ANY LESS, PLEASE EMAIL ME! GODLEY_GAL@YAHOO.COM!

I am going to Progresso on the 18th. What is a good doctor near there to get a fill and how much. I have been paying 150.00 in Covington,La for the past several years and not real happy.

I'm self pay $10,500 includes, pre-op tests, and fills for a year. Dr. Kim in Colleyvilles. It's nothing compared to the what I've spend the last 20 years in diets, pills, gym equip, clothes in 10 different sizes... as with anything, as the years go by price goes down.

__________________







Band 04/14/09
Optifast 04/01/09

I do not have insurance so I self paid for the procedure. The pretest was about $400.00. The procedure was $12,500 with only 6 fills then $100.00 per fill there after. The average in my area is about 12,000-15,000. Each doctor has their own final price.
Good luck.

__________________


11/1/08-Dr. Consult began 2 week preop diet.
11/11/08-Psych. consult, I'm not crazy...
11/14/08-Banded Dr. Patel, San Antonio
$$ Self pay $$
274/270/264/165
Dr,preo,today, GOAL

Well I am self pay & I am going thru TLCEdge Surgery Center. Their cost is $9,990.00 That includes nutrionist, their doctor to do EKG and checkup, bloodwork, surgeon, surgery, anesthesia, after appointment with surgeon & 1 fill. Each fill after that is $100.00 I really like using them. They are very very nice and very quick. I went to a seminar on June 30 which was a one-on-one seminar which I really liked b/c I wasn't in there with soooo many people and I am getting banded on July 29, 2009. So I did everything within a month. Good Luck on finding someone.

__________________




Surgery Date: July 29, 2009
Starting Weight: 270.6

$12,900 covers everything at True Results in Houston, TX. It even includes some fills. See if there is one in Dallas

__________________