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Here are just a few of the key benefits of taking your weight loss journey with us:

• Our surgeons meet with patients from the very first consultation. We believe that developing relationships early on will help us better understand your circumstances and goals, which will ultimately lead to better results. 
• We perform surgeries at Saline Memorial Hospital, which holds the following accreditations:

• Readers of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette have voted us as the Best Weight Loss Program for 2022 and 2023, and our surgeons and dietitians have been named among the "Best of the Best" in both the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and AY magazine.
• We have a vibrant and enthusiastic support group that communicates online and meets in-person. Here, the staff and patients offer encouragements, tips and recipes; they are even forming a group to train and walk in a 5K together.

We hope this helps you see a bit about what is so special about the Arkansas Bariatric Institute, but we encourage you to schedule a consultation so that you can see for yourself!

There are a several advantages to having weight loss surgery done in an accredited facility, but here are just a couple:

• You can expect a higher quality care because accredited facilities follow evidence-based best practices and are accountable to the accrediting organization for following quality standards and reporting results.
• More insurance companies cover bariatric surgery at accredited hospitals.

Yes, we are happy to share our data with you. First, here is a little background:

As an MBSAQIP-accredited facility, we submit data on all our surgeries, and MBSAQIP sends us a report twice a year, for the dates specified. The report shows where our surgical results fall into assessment categories: needs improvement, as expected or exemplary.

Note: This report only applies for stapling procedures, so that is why lap band, overstitch and balloon aren't included, even though we do report data on these procedures as well. 

Click here for the semiannual report for 07.01.23 to 06.30.24.

For commercial insurance policies, contact the customer service number on the back of your insurance card and ask this question exactly: “In my certificate of coverage are there benefits for weight loss surgery for morbid obesity if medically necessary?”

For Medicare, there are benefits for weight loss surgery as long as the criteria is met. There is no need to contact Medicare and Medicaid.

Most insurance companies that require a diet still require the diet no matter how many co-morbid diagnoses you have.

Yes, the diet is part of criteria set by your insurance company. Your physician can write you a letter of support which will assist in obtaining approval, but you still have to complete the diet.

This is a question that is asked a lot. Sometimes additional testing is required, one primary care may get the documentation back faster, or if your friend has a different insurance than you, maybe you were required to do a diet and your friend was not. If the insurances are different, then it may be because one insurance just takes longer to process than the other.

Usually the diet must be for at least 6 full months, which is one initial visit and 6 follow-up visits. Your appointments must be consecutive and the diet must be successful, meaning your end weight must be the same or less than your start weight.

This means that your particular plan does not have benefits for weight loss surgery, no matter if you meet the medical necessity requirements or not. Your insurance may tell you that you have appeal rights. Keep in mind that you will be appealing policy and not medical necessity. If there are no benefits for weight loss surgery, it basically means that the benefit was not purchased by your company.

We do offer bariatric surgery for patients who would like to pay out-of-pocket. Financing options are available through MD save. Pricing information can be found at mdsave.com/saline.

Many patients are able to stop using some medications such as those for diabetes or high blood-pressure if these health issues are directly related to their weight. It is recommended that bariatric surgery patients maintain a vitamin regimen indefinitely after their procedure.