Complaint filed for coverage denial for bariatric surgery

Several health care and advocacy groups filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services this month claiming that 27 states deny coverage for bariatric surgery and are not in compliance with the Affordable Care Act.

The organizations filing the complaint included the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, The Obesity Society, Academy for Nutrition and Dietetics, the Obesity Medicine Association and Obesity Action Coalition. All groups are part of the Obesity Care Continuum.

The complaint also claims that the failure to comply discriminates against women and people with disabilities as well as violates the ban against denying coverage based on health-status or pre-existing conditions.

“Qualified health plans should not be able to discriminate against people with the disease of obesity and unfortunately this is happening in most states,” John M. Morton, MD, MPH, president of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASBMS), said in a press release. “The time has come for equitable treatment for the millions of patients affected by obesity. There needs to be one America where treatment for obesity is an option for everyone.”

According to Morton, other chronic diseases are routinely covered; the American Medical Association classified obesity as a disease in 2013.

“There’s a double standard when it comes to obesity,” Morton said. “Most insurers are covering the treatments for the complications and consequences of obesity, but are not covering the treatment of obesity itself.”