did anyone use united healthcare insurance for their surgery?

January 18, 2004

how long do you have to wear the braces before you have the surgery?

My doctor said that the surgery will be in-patient. I have to go see

the orthodontist Tuesday. I hope that my insurance goes through,

thats the only thing that i an worried about. i have no worries about

the surgery, i just want it done. I can't stop worring that my

insurance won't help any. i have a severe overbite. It is hard for

me to even keep my mouth closed. It has caused me to have

depression. I will do whatever it takes to get done, I just hope my

insurance pays for most of it. Can any0ne give me some support? My

email is gladyslholliday@... thanks to any one with info.

January 19, 2004

Gladys,

I have insurance through United Healthcare, too. My claim for the

surgery is still pending. I went ahead and had the surgery anyway,

about 4 weeks ago. My doctor thinks they will cover at least a

portion of it since he wrote it up as being " medically necessary " to

correct a " congenital defect " in my jaw.

I'll post again on this board once I hear back from the insurance

company.

Sherri

> how long do you have to wear the braces before you have the

surgery?

> My doctor said that the surgery will be in-patient. I have to go

see

> the orthodontist Tuesday. I hope that my insurance goes through,

> thats the only thing that i an worried about. i have no worries

about

> the surgery, i just want it done. I can't stop worring that my

> insurance won't help any. i have a severe overbite. It is hard

for

> me to even keep my mouth closed. It has caused me to have

> depression. I will do whatever it takes to get done, I just hope

my

> insurance pays for most of it. Can any0ne give me some support?

My

> email is gladyslholliday@y... thanks to any one with info.

January 21, 2004

I wore braces for 3 1/2 years before I had surgery (was told that it

was suppose to only be about 10-12 months). As soon as your teeth

are straight and in position (or you are very close to it) is when

you start the insurance process using the the surgeon's help. Make

sure you get a copy of your insurance handbook beforehand and look

over the whole handbook to find out what they do and what they don't

cover first. Then when you do go see your surgeon tell them what

the insurance company does cover (ie. reconstructive surgery, jaw

pain, etc.) along with the symptoms that you suffer from because you

suffer from the " covered " item and make sure you do not mention any

symptoms/items about things they don't cover in your discussions

(ie. cosmetic reasons, open bite, etc.). He will then hopefully

base his predetermination letter to the insurance company on the

info you provided on what they do cover (they are a big part of the

whole process and the letter they write may determine if you have a

battle on your hands or if it might get covered the first time - one

little word or the wrong code could mean trouble). I do have UHC

and they covered the surgery after a 6 month fight.