Increase in DME Prices under Obama Care !

[PST]

What a refreshing change to NOT hear how everything is "Bush's fault"....

but I'm sure y'all will get around to that eventually.

I admire President Bush for developing the TARP program and shepherding it through Congress. It took political courage, given the opposition of many members of his own party, and it did a remarkable job of preventing a bad situation from spiraling completely out of control. I think it is unfair that so many Republicans now give President Obama the credit for a law signed at the beginning of October 2008.

[kempo]

The price of coffee went up this week - that must be because of Obama too. Amazing how he affects the price of coffee all over the world.

Printing trillions of worthless dollars will make coffee go up along with everything else. It has gotten so bad now that the Chinese are theatening to stop financing the U.S. debt. Our allies are raising hell because Obama is devaluating the dollar at a record rate.

Yes anything, get it, anything you buy will cost you more as inflation takes hold. And yes mam. It is Obama's fault.

[kempo]

The price of coffee went up this week - that must be because of Obama too. Amazing how he affects the price of coffee all over the world.

Well, he was in Indonesia, a major coffee producing country, this week. Coincidence?

Yea, he and 3000 of his friends on a vacation paid for by the U.S. tax payers and while he was there he just had to bad mouth my country again. He is so worried about my health care cost as he wines and dines in the Taj Mahal.

[PST]

Printing trillions of worthless dollars will make coffee go up along with everything else. It has gotten so bad now that the Chinese are theatening to stop financing the U.S. debt. Our allies are raising hell because Obama is devaluating the dollar at a record rate.

Yes anything, get it, anything you buy will cost you more as inflation takes hold. And yes mam. It is Obama's fault.

It certainly hasn't started yet. The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows the CPI up approximately 1 percent for September 2010 (latest available) over September 2009. That's just about the lowest rate of inflation in modern memory. We could make a bet whether hyper-inflation starts kicking in later this year. You can't lose. If I win, you pay me back in worthless dollars.

[chunkyfrog]

It was broken before--and it's still not fixed.
As long as the career politicians of both sides succeed in keeping us at war against each other, it will never be.
--And in the meanwhile they are taking our money as if they were giving us something for it.
BOTH SIDES. I have no doubt at some point there will be a taxpayer revolt; but apparently we still haven't been pushed too far yet.

[Muse-Inc]

The price of coffee went up this week - that must be because of Obama too. Amazing how he affects the price of coffee all over the world.

Well, he was in Indonesia, a major coffee producing country, this week. Coincidence?

[timbalionguy]

The negative effects of Obanacare started months ago. Look at Resmed and respironics price fixing schemes, and resMed's unfair competition policies.

Unless something is done about this 2000+ page monster, we working people will be taking a second job to pay for Obamacare, and everything else the liberals are trying to do.

[tony72]

Please leave politics out of cpap forum please.dme are raising prices just because they can.

[tony72]

Please leave politics out of cpap forum please.dme are raising prices just because they can.

[timbalionguy]

Please leave politics out of cpap forum please.dme are raising prices just because they can.

You hit the nail on the head. Because health care is usually non-optional, health care providers think they have a license to charge whatever they can get away with. Insane profit on the backs of hurting people. So, I'll switch from politics to religion-- there is an extra hot place in hell for such greedy people.

[montana]

I agree if ya don't like Medicare don't take it. I for one got tired of my DME sending over priced hoses , masks and filters. I called them and cancelled their services also reported them to Medicare. The only way to end fraud is to take action.

[gawood]

I have health insurance and they paid exactly 0 dollars for my equipment. I would be thrilled if I had insurance coverage that would pay even 50%. The unfairness of the way insurance is handled in this country is obvious from this thread. Some get 100% coverage and some get none. Some stockpile equipment they don't need and other need to use equipment until it falls apart since they can't afford to buy more. I am grateful for the fact I had insurance that allowed me to be diagnosed with OSA even if I had to pay for treatment myself. Many others in this country will never have the resources to even get a diagnosis, let alone treatment.

[The Guest]

Obama Care is just the tip of the iceberg as far as rising cost go. Not only is your insurance going up it is going to provide most people with less benefits. Hang on, the biggy will be coming to you soon in the form of inflation. We are printing trillions of worthless dollars and the cost of everything you buy, gas, food, cloths, ect. will be going for a much higher price.

Yeah, my insurance went up this year by 15% to $5000 a month! That's because I have an individual plan. Benefits keep on going down too. I hit 60 in a couple of years and I will probably get a 50% premium increase then too.

Obama care is just going to cost people more money and it doesn't fix the price-fixing and price gouging that goes on in the health care industry. All it does is buy votes by giving out free health care in the form of Medicaid. Boy are people going to be surprise when they find out that's the big pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!

Our politicians got away with this because lots of people in this country are looking for anything free -not for reform and a better system.

I don't understand why you have health insurance. Are you saying that you spend more than $60,000 per year on health care so that you have to have insurance? Why wouldn't you just pay for your medical care from that $60,000 and not pay the insurance? That is an outrageous amount.

[Slinky]

I just ran into some unexpected copays and expenses for my 02 therapy, but it had NOTHING to do w/the health care bill. It had to do w/Medicare cuts in reimbursement set into place before the health care bill AND a cutting back in BC/BS benefits for 02 therapy due to GM dumping their health care responsibilities on the UAW.

And before you get started on unions and the UAW be aware that WE, the workers, the union members, PAID for those benefits by taking much less in hourly wages all these years. Salaried GM workers took MUCH HARDER health and pension benefits HITS than union members did because they didn't have a union such as the UAW to protect their health and pension benefits.

[idamtnboy]

My DME Prices for Cpap Supplies have increased under the Obama Health Care Reform. In the Past I have Gotten my Replacement supplies ( Mask, tubing, Filters and Humidifier tank at No out of Pocket expense to myself. But in the Past six Months I have been recieving Bills from my DME ( American Home Patient ) for balances owed after my Insurance Coverage ( Medicare and BC/BS ).

It isn't Obamacare that's responsible, it's your DME supplier. They've probably decided they can't live with the Medicare allowed prices, or are afraid the scheduled cuts in Medicare payments won't be stopped. Evidently they have decided to move their billing from the "assigned" to "unassigned" category. I.e., they no longer accept Medicare payment allowance, of which Medicare pays 80% and BCBS pays 20%, as payment in full and are no longer a "participating provider." But the total amount they charge still cannot exceed 115% of the Medicare allowance if they are going to accept Medicare payment at all. They're taking a risk because folks like you very well may take their business to a DME supplier who is participating. I take it you now own your CPAP machine so they are no longer under the rental agreement w/ Medicare.

Your only choice is to move to a participating supplier, but those will be fewer and fewer if Congress doesn't kill the scheduled cuts in Medicare payments.