Posted by Patient Help Desk on July 27, 2008 under Financial | 
Sure, by undergoing bariatric surgery, you’re dramatically improving your health, both now and in the future. But you’re also doing some very good things to your bank account!
A growing number of studies have found that weight loss procedures have imparted valuable benefits for reducing the development of conditions common to morbidly obese men and women. That in part has contributed to falling rates for these patients’ insurance claims. A published study the American Journal of Managed Care showed that in as quickly as 2 to 4 years, health insurers can hope to recoup their costs, which can soar as high $17,000-$26,000.
Surgery or Not: Who Is More Cost-Effective?
For this study, the insurance claims of two subject groups were compared. One group involved over 3,600 morbidly obese men and women who had experienced laparoscopic bariatric surgery, while the other group involved 3,600 subjects who didn’t have surgery. The findings demonstrated that for the surgical subjects expressed reduced percentages of sleep apnea, hypertension and diabetes following their operations. The non-surgical subjects’ percentages rose or stayed the same.
One year after the study’s start, the surgical subjects’ monthly medical costs were as much as $900 less than the non-surgical subjects. Dr. Scott Shikora, president of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, and the study’s co-author stated: “Bariatric surgery is a unique field in that with one operation you can cure a wide range of different health conditions.”He added, “this paper demonstrated that you can do that and actually save money in the process.”
Faced with these potentially dramatic health and financial benefits, is it really that surprising that so many obese men and women are going under the knife? About 220,000 surgeries will be performed this year, for a more-than-tenfold increase since 1992. Even better, research suggests that the risk of death from weight loss surgery is now below 1%!
Most health insurers consider cost to be the biggest issue for coverage. While they typically so provide coverage, they try to make it very difficult for patients. As you’d expect, this angers medical professionals. “Obesity is a disease, it’s not just a choice or an eating affliction,” says Shikora. “It is a genetic disease, and I don’t feel that the morbidly obese patient should be treated any differently than a patient with breast cancer, or HIV or other ailments.”
Posted by Patient Help Desk on April 10, 2008 under Bariatric Surgery & Money |
Every day, we’re exposed to a startling variety of food-related advertisements on television, in print publications, all over the Web, and even on movie screens. It’s becoming almost impossible to completely escape this high-calorie onslaught of fat- and calorie-laden junk food. So, is it really that surprising that a large percentage of America’s adult population is now considered obese?
Let’s put this potential crisis in perspective. According to a published article in the journal Obesity, by 2030, if trends don’t reverse, an estimated 86% of the nation’s population will be considered overweight or obese! And now it seems that the American obesity epidemic is having an effect on those with a healthy weight.
Excess Pounds Can Mean Excess Dollars
As you well know, obesity may call for specialized healthcare needs. Research shows that the obese are at a greater risk of developing cardiovascular conditions, as well as type 2 diabetes. A published Newsweek study suggests that obesity is taking a staggering toll on America’s finances. Among the factors contributing to the ever-growing price tag are:
Ø Reduced pay rates – in a Stanford University study, it was observed that both obese men and women earn an average of $3.41 per hour less ($7,093 annually) than their skinnier co-workers. Older obese workers are more affected, most likely due to increased healthcare costs.
Ø Reduced hours worked – the obese miss about one week per year due to weight-related ailments. In their book “The Fattening of America,” authors Eric A. Finkelstein and Laurie Zuckerman found that obese employees typically cost firms employing 1,000 employees $285,000 annually.
Ø Increased medical costs – overweight men and women have been shown to cost companies more than their healthier co-workers. Overweight men incurred $170 in annual medical costs, while overweight females incurred $495 more. In addition, the obese cause hospitals to spend more, as well.
Ø Increased air travel costs – the overweight and/or obese pay an added price in the sky. They may require additional seats, as well as increased fuel. In 2004, the CDC found that airlines spent $275 million for an 350 million gallons of added fuel to support the extra weight.
Ø Increased gasoline costs – as you’d expect, being overweight or obese also requires additional gasoline. When comparing the years 1960 and 2006, Americans pumped 938 million more gallons of fuel a year. This works out to an estimated $3.55 billion in annual gas increases nationwide!
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has determined that 24 million are now afflicted with type 2 diabetes. The skyrocketing number of those afflicted with diabetes-related obesity (or “diabesity”) may be one of the biggest causes of our ever-increasing health insurance premiums.
Just how expensive is diabetes? According to the American Diabetes Association, diabetes-related medical expenditures resulted in about $116 billion in 2007. As such, American companies big and small are considering gastric bypass/bariatric surgery as an alternative for obesity. Today, it’s believed that 140,000 gastric bypass surgeries are performed nationwide annually.
For more information on bariatric surgery and surgical options, please visit our sponsor, NE Baptist Bariatric Center, a Bariatric Center of Excellence.
