How Different is Hernia Repair from a Tummy Tuck?

Hernia repair addresses an opening that has occurred in the fascia or the covering of the rectus (six pack) muscles. It will simply close up the hole. It does not remove any excess skin or tighten the muscles.
You can get a combined hernia repair and abdominoplasty and have it all done in one surgery. Ofcourse, the hernia repair will be covered by your health insurance but the tummy tuck would be a cosmetic cost. You can find a plastic surgeon that may feel comfortable taking care of both or you may need to find a general surgeon to deal with the hernia and a plastic surgeon to perform the tummy tuck.
Just make sure your plastic surgeon is board certified by the american board of plastic surgery. There are some general surgeons out there that will tell you that they can do both........I highly advised against that.
GOOD LUCK.

Furthermore, the scar for a larger hernia such as your may be up-and-down (above and below the belly button.) That depends on the surgeon, however.
My recommendation is to fix the hernia at the time of tummy tuck through a more hidden bikini-line incision. An option is to seek a surgeon certified in general and plastic surgery, who can do both operations at once.