Carta de PA para Blue Shield of California: Recuperación de peso post-bariátrica.
Plantilla defensible de carta para Wegovy or Zepbound. Patients with weight regain after bariatric surgery qualify under the obesity indication if current BMI is 30 or above (or 27 with comorbidity). Surgical history is supportive, not exclusionary.
La carta misma está en inglés porque el revisor del plan la lee en inglés. La envuelve y la firma su clínico.
Nota del plan: Blue Shield CA has historically required BMI greater than or equal to 30, documented lifestyle intervention for at least six months and step therapy through phentermine where not contraindicated. Some Blue Shield Promise (Medi-Cal managed care) plans follow Medi-Cal PDL, which excludes GLP-1 for obesity indication entirely as of 2026.
Blue Shield of California contrata la administración del beneficio de farmacia a MedImpact, que adjudica esta PA. Los criterios siguientes provienen de la política clínica del PBM publicada públicamente. Cumpla cada uno antes de enviar.
- Plan-affiliate dependent; criteria vary substantially across Blue Shield CA, Premera, Highmark and Medicaid MCO contracts
- Common baseline: BMI greater than or equal to 30 (or 27 with comorbidity), six-month lifestyle intervention
- Step therapy requirements vary, verify against your specific plan's criteria PDF, not generic MedImpact policy
- Reauthorization terms plan-dependent (most annual)
- Some Medi-Cal managed care plans under MedImpact exclude obesity-indication GLP-1 entirely (state PDL takes precedence)
La carta (copiar y editar)
Copie el cuerpo a continuación y péguelo en el portal de su clínico o procesador de textos. Reemplace cada marcador de posición entre [CORCHETES] con datos específicos del paciente antes de enviar. La carta es de su clínico al plan, firmada por su clínico.
[Today's date] Blue Shield of California Prior Authorization Department Submitted via: Blue Shield provider portal or fax 1-888-697-8122 Re: Prior Authorization Request, Wegovy or Zepbound Patient: [Patient full name] Member ID: [Plan member ID] Date of birth: [Patient DOB] Group number: [Group number if applicable] Prescriber: [Prescriber full name, NPI, DEA] Prescriber contact: [Phone, fax, email] To the Blue Shield of California Prior Authorization Reviewer, I am the treating clinician for [Patient name]. I am writing to request prior authorization for Wegovy or Zepbound for treatment of Post-bariatric weight regain (ICD-10: Z98.84, E66.01). Clinical justification Bariatric surgery is durable for most patients, but 20 to 50 percent experience clinically significant weight regain over the long term. Post-bariatric GLP-1 use has growing evidence: the 2024 BARI-OPTIMISE trial (Wegovy in patients with post-bariatric weight regain) demonstrated 8.8 percent mean weight loss versus 0.5 percent for placebo over 16 weeks. Post-bariatric status (ICD-10 Z98.84) does not exclude a patient from anti-obesity pharmacotherapy under any major plan's PA criteria; the qualifying criterion is current BMI plus comorbidities, regardless of how the patient reached that BMI. Patient-specific findings - [Insert current measurements: weight, height, BMI, blood pressure] - [Insert relevant lab values with dates: A1c, lipid panel, kidney function] - [Insert documentation of comorbidities with ICD-10] - [Insert documentation of prior treatment history, including any prior GLP-1 trials, anti-obesity medication trials or lifestyle intervention] Criteria met per Blue Shield of California policy This request meets the criteria set out in Blue Shield of California Medical Policy, Anti-Obesity Pharmacotherapy: - Current BMI and the date measured - Type and date of prior bariatric procedure (Roux-en-Y, sleeve gastrectomy, gastric bypass, duodenal switch) - Documented post-surgical weight nadir and current weight to establish regain pattern - Comorbidity status (T2D, hypertension, dyslipidemia, OSA) using ICD-10 codes - Bariatric surgeon or obesity medicine specialist co-signing the letter when possible Supporting evidence The clinical case for Wegovy or Zepbound in this indication is supported by the following registration trials and outcomes data: - BARI-OPTIMISE (semaglutide 2.4 mg in post-bariatric weight regain), Mok et al. 2024 - Pajecki et al. 2023 (liraglutide in post-bariatric regain) Plan-specific note Blue Shield CA has historically required BMI greater than or equal to 30, documented lifestyle intervention for at least six months and step therapy through phentermine where not contraindicated. Some Blue Shield Promise (Medi-Cal managed care) plans follow Medi-Cal PDL, which excludes GLP-1 for obesity indication entirely as of 2026. Requested action I am requesting prior authorization for Wegovy or Zepbound at the [insert starting dose] starting dose, with planned titration per FDA labeling. I am also requesting that this authorization be granted for a continuous 12-month period subject to documented clinical response, per standard formulary practice. If additional information is required, please contact me directly at [Prescriber phone] or [Prescriber email]. I am available to discuss this case with your medical director if helpful. Thank you for your attention to this request. Sincerely, [Prescriber full signature] [Prescriber printed name, credentials] [Prescriber NPI] [Practice name and address] Attachments: - Current vital signs and BMI calculation - Most recent relevant labs - Documentation of comorbidities - Documentation of prior treatment trials - Sleep study report (if OSA indication) - Cardiac history documentation (if CV indication)
Aviso legal
Plantillas educativas únicamente. No constituyen asesoramiento legal ni médico. Las cartas deben ser firmadas por el clínico tratante (MD, DO, NP, PA) con autoridad de prescripción. Cada plan cambia los criterios trimestralmente. Verifique con el boletín de política de PA más reciente de su plan antes de enviar. No invente hallazgos clínicos. No altere la firma de un clínico.