Surgical Weight Loss FAQ

This page is dedicated to helping you answer the many questions you have regarding surgical weight loss and all it entails.

If you do not see the information you are searching for below, please submit your question to our Bariatric Coordinator by filling in and submitting this form.

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Does West Hills Hospital accept Medicare/MediCal insurance? Is there any way for Medcare/MediCal insurance to cover Lap Band Surgery? -8.11.08
West Hills Hospital was designated as a Center of Excellence in Bariatric Surgery in 2007. As such, we are approved to perform both the Lap Band and Gastric Bypass procedures for patients who carry Medicare. If you have insurance that is secondary to Medicare, it could cover most, if not all, of the deductible required by Medicare. With regard to MediCal, we do not accept it for Bariatric procedures.

Is West Hills Bariatric Surgery part of the Medicare Centers of Excellence? In other words, is it approved by Medicare for Lap Band Surgery? -6.04.08
Medicare requires its members to have any Bariatric procedure at a Center of Excellence facility so designated by either the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) or the American College of Surgeons (ACS). As West Hills Hospital has been designated as a Center of Excellence by the ASMBS, we can perform Bariatric procedures on Medicare patients.

I had surgery in July of last year from a private surgeon outside of West Hills Hospital. I would like to have a doctor in West Hills assist me with the adjustments, visits, etc. What needs to be done on my end? -11.17.10
Please call the Bariatric Coordinator (818/676-4141) for the contact information on our surgeons who will be more than happy to assist you. Alternatively, you can go to the West Hills Hospital website and, under Find A Physician, you can look up our Bariatric surgeons.