Study: Weight-Loss Surgery Is Cost-Effective

NEW YORK — Bariatric surgery, the most common type of weight-loss surgery, may now be the most cost effective surgery as a new study published in the September issue of the American Journal of Managed Care revealed that the $17,000 to $26,000 surgery cost can be offset within two to four years. These findings may increase pressure on health-insurance companies to cover gastric bypass surgery. According to the Wall Street Journal, “the study showed that insurers fully recovered the costs of laparoscopic surgery after 25 months. Between 2003 and 2005, the break-even point was reached in 49 months for traditional bariatric surgery.”

To read the American Journal of  Managed Care article, click here.

To read the Wall Street Journal article, click here.

Source: Wall Street Journal, American Journal of  Managed Care