Walked Out On DME

[jrv331]

Just venting here. I have been waiting since July for my cpap machine. I have been calling my DME, Lincare, every week requesting the Resmed Airsense 11 if possible and the Dreamwear nasal mask, figured why not shoot for the newest machine since I wont get one for 5 more years. I did tell them I want something that communicates the readings in and do not want an SD card only machine.

I get the call last week that my 11 is in and set up my appointment today to pick it all up and go over the compliance stuff. When I arrive at the office I'm taken into the office to sign some paperwork. I am given a list of equipment I am receiving today and asked to sign for it. My machine is listed as the Airsense 10 autoset , disappointed but hey its still a good machine. But I explained that I was hoping for the 11 and she says they have not had one of those in months. I said , hang on a minute I talked to the sales guy last week and he said they had a few in stock. She say's he must have been mistaken. Strike One.

I aske to see the cpap machine before I sign for it, she's hesitantly gets it for me. I aske if its the model with the modem/wifi and she says, its cloud based saying its the newest model 10. I ask her to clarify and after further conversation finally learn that its the lower end cloud to sd version. I tell her I specifically said I did not want that version because I dont want to have to keep bringing my SD csrd in for the next few months and it wont work with Resmed my air . She says no one ever told her that and my prescription doesn't specify a specific machine. She really did not seem to understand why I would not take the maching. I basically told her that ultimately I will be paying out of pocket for the machine and I dont want to be paying for a machine I dont want. I tell her that the model I want will be addressed with my dr and re faxed back to them. I then ask to speak to the sales guy Ive been talking to because I feel I have been mislead, he's not available . Strike 2.

So I keep looking at the list of things Im getting and there is a Resmend F20 mask on there. I asked what that is for and where is the Dreamwear mask. She has no Idea what Im talking about. I told her I specifically requested the Dreamwear mask and asked who decided I would get the full face mask. She says a mask type is not listed on my prescription and that's what they decided to give me. I asked how they could decide what mask I would get with out even talking to me. I told her that I will not wear a full face mask, I use nasal masks. We look at my prescription and it says "mask of choice". I tell her its my choice not hers and she asks if I want the machine with out the mask. I tell her that she has not been listening at all, I dont want the machine or that mask. (I did relent and say I would take the Resmed airfit N20 nasal mask, nope they dont have it either) Strike 3.

I told her we were done and Im not taking equipment that I will not wear or use and were just wasting each other time and I leave with out signing anything. As Im leaving I see 3 other people about to take the "training class" and Im thinking to myself, these poor people are going to get what ever mask is put in front of them with no thought of what is actually best for them as there is no more trying on different ones.

Went home and called my Dr who sent my prescription to another company. With in an hour I got a call from them verifying my info but also saying its 10-12 weeks before my cpap will arrive because of supply chain issues, they did say it could be quicker if I take what ever I get but Im holding out for the 11. So basically starting all over.
Thanks for listening.

[Pugsy]

my DME, Lincare,

Now you know why we not so affectionately refer to LinCare as Lin(I Don't) Care.
My personal thoughts about them (and I fired my local Lin(IDon't)Care DME when I first started cpap therapy for lying to me once) are rather "colorful" in what adjectives I use. Not suitable for public print.
No one lies to to me....period. Not even once.

[Dog Slobber]

I agree with you not accepting a machine you're not happy with, but wanted to clear up one inaccuracy.

I tell her I specifically said I did not want that version because I dont want to have to keep bringing my SD csrd in for the next few months and it wont work with Resmed my air or oscar .

All the ResMed Card-to-Cloud machines work perfectly fine with OSCAR.

[jrv331]

My bad, I thought it did not work with Oscar either. I edited the original post. And just to be clear I’m not saying the card to cloud version is bad, I just prefer the WiFi/cellular version since I’m traveling several weeks the rest of the year and need to show compliance to the insurance company.
Thank you

[Janknitz]

Despite the cost, I actually celebrated when I lost my DME coverage because I don't have to put up with that $h*+ any more. Even when I go on Medicare, I plan on getting my own equipment.

[lindalrc]

There IS a supply problem with the Airsense 11. Just keep waiting. I was eligible so ordered one thru the Dr and the DME in March/April when I realized that my 7 year old Airsense 10 only worked with 3G and Resmed stopped connecting with it. I got it in early August, so the wait was 4 months. Apparently the chip supply is the core issue.
Lindalrc