Carole Dassonville of Spotsylvania County reads a story to her day-care group. Dassonville has lost more than 160 pounds since undergoing gastric bypass surgery nearly two years ago. REBECCA SELL/THE FREE LANCE-STAR Visit the Photo Place

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Obesity surgery Lawmaker wants to help patients bypass the costs

A Virginia lawmaker wants insurance companies to cover the costs of obesity surgery

Date published: 1/22/2006

By BECKY PIEDEL

CAROLE DASSONVILLE'S 5-foot-4-inch frame couldn't handle the 322 pounds stacked on top of it.

High blood pressure plagued her heart, and asthma attacked her lungs. A hernia protruded from her stomach. Sleep apnea kept her from getting a good night's rest. She took medications for just about everything.

But Dassonville, of Spotsylvania County, wouldn't accept that her weight was the problem.

Then one morning in 2003, Dassonville doubled over in pain while walking children from her home-based day-care center to the bus stop. She could hardly catch her breath.

A blood clot had formed in her leg and traveled to her lung.

Dassonville recovered after three days at Mary Washington Hospital, but she knew she was lucky. The clot could have killed her.

The scare prompted the 46-year-old to take her weight problem more seriously.

Dassonville started looking into gastric bypass surgery online. She mentioned the operation to her doctor, and they decided it was a realistic option for her.

"It was either I died because of the illnesses," she said, "or I'd die on the table. I was in a corner. I had to do it one way or the other."

In March 2004, Dassonville underwent gastric bypass surgery. She was one of nearly 200,000 Americans who had the procedure done that year.

Today, Dassonville is a slimmer 150 pounds. Her ailments are gone, and she feels like a new person.

"I'm 47 and I feel like I'm in my 20s now," Dassonville said. "I can run up the stairs now when before I had shortness of breath and arthritis."

Dassonville was lucky: While some gastric bypass patients face the burden of paying for the expensive surgery, she paid only her yearly deductible. Her insurance provider, Anthem, paid for the rest of the $25,000 operation.

Not all insurance companies foot the whole bill. Some say the procedure is too risky. And recent studies on gastric bypass say the risk of complications, including death, is higher than previously suggested.

But a Virginia lawmaker wants to require insurance companies to provide coverage.

During last year's General Assembly session, Republican Del. John O'Bannon, of Henrico County, proposed a bill that would require insurance companies to pay for the surgery as treatment for morbid obesity.

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Date published: 1/22/2006