To examine appointment accessibility and program requirements among patients pursuing metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS) in North Carolina and South Carolina.
Approach:
Study Design: A secret shopper study was conducted at 35 metabolic and bariatric surgery centers in North Carolina and South Carolina.
Data Collection: Trained callers posed as patients with Medicaid and private insurance to assess appointment accessibility, wait times, and administrative barriers.
Key Findings:
68.6% of centers were successfully contacted.
Private insurance was universally accepted; Medicaid was accepted by 94.3% of centers.
The median appointment wait time was 20 days, with no variation based on insurance type.
77.1% of centers had pre-appointment requirements, including online applications and seminar attendance.
31.4% of centers were unreachable after multiple contact attempts due to incorrect information.
Interpretation:
Administrative obstacles, rather than insurance-related disparities, were identified as significant barriers to MBS appointment access.
Limitations:
The study was limited to two states, which may not represent the national landscape.
Only telephone contact was assessed, potentially overlooking other access barriers.
Conclusion:
Administrative requirements create barriers to accessing MBS.
