push the insurance company. do not take "no" as the first answer and ask to talk to the medical director or better yet have your physician request an exemption to the rule. a friend of mine wanted a colonoscopy early because her grandmother had colon cancer. they refused at first only offering a sigmoidoscopy (a cheaper and less- thorough exam). they finally okayed the colonoscopy and a pre-cancerous lesion was found in a place where the sigmoidoscopy would not have discovered. had she waited several more years like the insurance company wanted she would have definitely had colon cancer by that time. fight 'em!
if i am at high risk for colon cancer but not yet 50 why won't doctors bill a colonoscopy as routine? . my brother-in-law was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer at 46 years old. he died last september. . my husband is 48 and wants to get a colonoscopy but the procedure is not being billed as "routine" so we would have to meet our entire deductible before insurance pays anything. . what are our options?