Does My Insurance Cover Bariatric Surgery?

Your insurance plan may provide benefits for weight loss surgery. Every insurance company has its own set of policies and criteria for bariatric surgery coverage and most plans are very employer-specific. To have our staff verify your insurance benefits for weight loss surgery and office visits, please fill out our online insurance verification form. 

Verify Your Benefits

What Insurance Companies Cover Weight Loss Surgery? 

The Center for Weight Loss Surgery and Dr. Srikanth are contracted with the following insurance companies that typically cover bariatric surgery in Washington State:

• Aetna
• Blue Cross/Blue Shield
• Cigna
• First Choice Health
• GEHA (Government Employees Health Association)
• Kaiser Permanente
• Premera
• Regence
• UMR
• United Healthcare

Please note that at this time, we have opted out of participation in Medicare and Medicaid. Our practice offers self-pay options if weight loss surgery is not covered under your insurance plan. 

What to Ask Your Insurance Company

We recommend that you contact your insurance company to verify your benefits as well. Reading your policy carefully and working closely with both your insurance company and our office are important to ensure that bariatric surgery is, in fact, a covered benefit under your plan.

Make sure to get the following information when you call your insurance company:

1. Name of the person with whom you spoke
2. Date and time of your call
3. Reference number for the call
4. List of procedures that are covered (e.g., sleeve gastrectomy, duodenal switch, adjustable gastric band, revisions, etc.)
5. Criteria that must be met to receive coverage for bariatric surgery (see section below)

Common Insurance Requirements for Bariatric Surgery

Insurance company criteria for weight loss surgery may include, but are not limited to:

• BMI (body mass index) of 40 or above
• BMI between 35 and 39.9 with comorbidities such as hypertension, diabetes, sleep apnea, cardiovascular disease, etc.
• BMI between 30 and 34.9 with type 2 diabetes 
• Psychological evaluation
• Clinician-supervised diet program of between 1 – 6 months

Verify Your Insurance