Payment Options & Insurance

Before filling out your new patient packet, you need to contact your insurance carrier to determine the level of coverage and the type of plan you have, such as a PPO or HMO. Or you may decide to become a cash-paying customer or seek financing. You need to make this important decision before proceeding with the new patient application process.

Payment Options - Cash and Financing
More and more people are finding it difficult or even impossible to use their health insurance to pay or help pay for weight loss surgery. Fortunately, at the Scottsdale Bariatric Center, we offer a substantial discount to patients paying cash or obtaining financing.

  • Cash/Credit Card As a patient paying cash or by credit card, the good news is you don't need to provide us with any kind of authorization. If this is an option for you, please contact our billing and insurance specialist online at dianaj@ScottsdaleBariatric.com or call Scottsdale Bariatric Center at 800.504.9567.
  • We accept all major credit cards.
  • Patient Financing Your personal bank, your Mortgage Company and now even online Internet financing companies can provide you with a good alternative to using your savings to pay for surgery.
  • Patients have had good results using Advanced Patient Financing. They are available at 1-888-492-1771 or on-line at: www.advancedpatient.com.
  • We also recommend National City to help with your financing needs, which offer a .25% discount for Realize Band patients. For more information please visit: http://www.nationalcity.com/mgrady

Contracted Insurances

Scottsdale Bariatric Center is currently contracted with the following insurance companies:

  • United HealthcareS
  • Cigna
  • Blue Cross/Blue Shield
  • Schaller Anderson
  • First Health
  • CCN
  • AM/Ran

If your insurance provider is not listed above, please contact our office. Though we may not be contracted you perhaps have out of network benefits and are still able to proceed with Scottsdale Bariatric Center.

Medicare Patients
SBC will be opting-out of Medicare effective April 1st, 2008. For a list of providers who do accept Medicare, please visit http://www.surgicalreview.org

Health Insurance
Many insurance carriers now offer a benefit for weight loss surgery procedures, but the coverage may vary based on your plan. For instance, they cover the Gastric Bypass but not the Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Band procedure. As the patient and policyholder, you are responsible for determining what your particular policy will or will not cover.

The first step in determining your coverage is to contact your insurance carriers' member services by calling the number listed on your insurance card. If the member services number is not listed, contact the person at work who manages your insurance policy for that information.

The following are questions that you need to ask your insurance carrier before you submit your new patient packet if you plan to pay through insurance:

  1. Do I have a benefit for weight loss surgery?
    • If "Yes"...Your Insurance Carrier Provides Coverage If your insurance carrier covers weight loss surgery, ask them what procedures they will cover and what the criteria is for using your benefit. Use this information to determine whether you qualify for coverage. Some carriers will tell you this information can only be given to the medical provider, your doctor. This is not true. As a premium-paying policyholder, you have a legal right to know what is required to utilize your benefits.
    • If "No"...Your Insurance Carrier Does Not Provide Coverage In this case, you do not have a benefit and your insurance company will not pay for any procedure. This means that when your employer selected an insurance company and a specific plan with specific benefits to provide health insurance to the employees, they did not choose to pay for, and include, weight loss surgery as a benefit in the overall plan. If you want the procedure, you will need to consider patient financing or paying cash as other options.
  2. What Type of Plan Do I Have: PPO or HMO?

    Whether or not you have a PPO or HMO plan is important because it determines the surgeon and hospital your insurance plan authorizes. In general, PPO plans allow you much more flexibility in choosing your physician and program.

    • PPO Plans - Ask If Your Policy Provides Out-of-Network Benefits PPO plans generally have out-of-network benefits that allow patients to select their physician of choice. Benefits are slightly reduced when choosing an out-of-network doctor, which will result in some out-of-pocket expenses for the patient. Your specific plan will determine what out-of-pocket expenses you will be responsible for.
    • HMO Plans HMO plans generally do not allow members to obtain surgery outside of the network. They may generate a referral for a consultation but will not provide a referral for surgery.
  3. What happens if my insurance company denies the procedure?

    The easiest thing to do would be to meet the requirements of the denial. Over 90% of denials are due to the requirement of the six month medically supervised weight loss program. Simply sign up for our weight loss program and meet the requirement. We can help with that. Please contact the billing office by email dianaj@ScottsdaleBariatric.com or phone to discuss how easily you can turn your denial into an approval.


The health and medical information presented on this web site is for educational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for medical care. If you have a medical question about any of this information, please consult your family doctor or a health care professional. Every reasonable effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information presented on this web site. The Scottsdale Bariatric Center makes no guarantee or promise, express or implied, as to the accuracy or reliability of the information presented. This information is subject to change without notice and cannot be guaranteed to be current.