The Unexpected Costs of Weight-Loss Surgery

For those burdened by a lifetime of obesity, the cost of weight-loss surgery is well worth it, especially if they are covered by good medical insurance. The gastric bypass, the most popular form of weight-loss surgery to date, can cost from $20,000 to $35,000. However, that's not the grand total; there are other, often-unexpected costs of weight-loss surgery of which consumers should be aware.

The first is the co-pay for the surgery itself. Some insurers will pay for the operation when obesity presents a serious threat to health, but even then high co-pays are not unusual. A recent New York Times article quoted Dr. Robin Blackstone of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery as saying that this can be as much as $5,000.