What you need to know before seeing a DME

Janknitz · Post by **Janknitz** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 9:59 pm

I started some pages on my blog to help newbies out. Seems like we answer the same questions all the time, and I thought it would be nice to be able to point newbies to a site with more detailed info than what can be fit into a short post on this forum.

Part I about insurance has been posted here: http://maskarrayed.wordpress.com/what-y ... me-part-i/

Part II will be about choosing a machine.

Part III will be about choosing a DME provider or online provider.

I also hope to post hints and tips about getting used to the machine, and will probably turn my Respironics data tutorial into a page at some point.

Anyway, I'd appreciate if you'd visit the page and give me feedback. Anything to make the page useful for a newbie is appreciated.

jlk · Post by **jlk** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 11:04 pm

That is great as far as I am concerned. That is very helpful to anyone learning the ropes. I wish I had that info when I started pappin 5 years ago. Would have been a lot easier for me for sure! Thank You! john

Sillyme · Post by **Sillyme** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 5:23 am

Janknitz wrote:I started some pages on my blog to help newbies out.

I'm sure it will save a lot of people a lot of grief. Maybe you can get it posted permanately at the top.

YelloJeep · Post by **YelloJeep** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 7:39 am

Thank you for that information. I've just been diagnosed and am off to get hosed this Wednesday.

KatieW · Post by **KatieW** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 8:33 am

Excellent article! I can see that you put a lot of work into this, thank you.

meahmiller · Post by **meahmiller** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 11:26 am

oh how i wish i had all that info before i went to my dr for my results.

i was told i needed a cpap machine and then brought to a cpap room where a box was taken out and i was told this is your machine. they unwrapped it explained it somewhat and sent me to check out. i paid my copay for it and was off. now that i have read up on all of this new stuff i am a bit concerned. i don't even know which model remstar cpap machine i have. i have called the sleep center and left messages for them to call me back but they don't.

so now idk what to do. from what i can tell i have the lowest model remstar that only records hours of use. i would like to get a better cpap machine but don't even know if its possible now since my insurance has already paid on the one i have.

chunkyfrog · Post by **chunkyfrog** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 11:36 am

Unless it's over 30 days, there may be hope.
Read on--others do not have to be back at their desks--cheers!
To Yellojeep: before you go, ask them to tell you what model, features the machine has--
It's not to late to get a new prescription, if need be.
DME's will charge through the nose for the better machine.
If your RX is for a CPAP, you can get an APAP, but not the other way around.
For instance in our case: Online; S9 Autoset is only a hundred bucks more than the Escape--
Rotten Dme wants more than $470 over what insurance pays.
Hey, it's way less than a funeral, ER visit; Hospital stay. We are investing in our health!

LoQ · Post by **LoQ** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 12:01 pm

tarren1 wrote:I'm sure it will save a lot of people a lot of grief. Maybe you can get it posted permanately at the top.

tarren1, you are fooling no one. You are a spammer. You just copied the last post and thought no one would see through you.

meahmiller · Post by **meahmiller** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 3:28 pm

good news!!! the sleep center finally called me back. they are going to order me a remstar pro and exchange mine out. since my machine is only 33 days old its only going to cost me $27 the difference between the two machines.

Sillyme · Post by **Sillyme** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 3:30 pm

LoQ wrote:
tarren1 wrote:I'm sure it will save a lot of people a lot of grief. Maybe you can get it posted permanately at the top.
tarren1, you are fooling no one. You are a spammer. You just copied the last post and thought no one would see through you.

I wondered why someone duplicated my post. Now I see the link in the signature.

Sillyme · Post by **Sillyme** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 3:32 pm

meahmiller wrote:good news!!! the sleep center finally called me back. they are going to order me a remstar pro and exchange mine out. since my machine is only 33 days old its only going to cost me $27 the difference between the two machines.

Good for you.

Calist · Post by **Calist** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 3:32 pm

DME are just scum. I have heard so many horror stories over the years. Take every bit of advice this guy gives you.

LoQ · Post by **LoQ** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 3:34 pm

Sillyme wrote:I wondered why someone duplicated my post. Now I see the link xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.

Shhhh. We don't want people clicking on it. That only rewards the spammer.

So Well · Post by **So Well** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 5:46 pm

Janknitz wrote:I started some pages on my blog to help newbies out. Seems like we answer the same questions all the time, and I thought it would be nice to be able to point newbies to a site with more detailed info than what can be fit into a short post on this forum.

Part I about insurance has been posted here: http://maskarrayed.wordpress.com/what-y ... me-part-i/

Part II will be about choosing a machine.

Part III will be about choosing a DME provider or online provider.

I also hope to post hints and tips about getting used to the machine, and will probably turn my Respironics data tutorial into a page at some point.

Anyway, I'd appreciate if you'd visit the page and give me feedback. Anything to make the page useful for a newbie is appreciated.

Your blog provides some excellent advice and I applaud you for helping people about to embark on the CPAP experience.

However, I do take exception to one of your political comments: "That’s the first bit of information you need to know before you meet your DME. This is ‘Merica, folks, land of free enterprise and capitalism. Every company must make a profit and their goal is to make the most profit they can. If, in doing so, they can serve your needs, that’s great. .... It’s the American way. "

What you are referring to is exactly the opposite of what you state it is. The market for medical equipment in the U.S. is one of the most highly regulated markets in the U.S. Both the equipment manufacturers and the DMEs operate under onerous regulations.

It is a fact of the history of markets that when they are so heavily regulated the suppliers focus on the regulations, the regulators, and the bureaucracy and not the customer. The regulations limit competition and make it difficult for new competitors to come into the market. The regulations help the entrenched suppliers and the suppliers' survival is more dependent on satisfying the regulators and the bureaucracy. The customers' choices are limited and they often have to buy from a supplier they do not like and buy products or services they do not like.

In an unregulated market the suppliers' survival is dependent on the customer voluntarily giving his money in exchange for a product and service. The suppliers must focus on satisfying the customer in order to survive. If the customer is not happy with the price, product or service the supplier will fail. It is also easy for new suppliers to enter the market and bring more competition and customer service.

Think about the market for televisions which is lightly regulated. If you imagine a television retailer offering the poor service, price and quality that the typical brick-and-mortar DME offers, you can easily imagine that he would soon be out of business. But this does not happen to bad DMEs because they are entrenched and protected by the regulations and government bureaucracy.

So when you say, "This is 'Merica, folks", you are not referring to free enterprise/capitalism. You are referring to what is known as "crony capitalism". Crony capitalism is when governments are in bed with certain industries and suppliers. When this happens the politicians gain and the entrenched suppliers gain but the consumer loses.

In free enterprise, the consumers gain and the only suppliers who gain are the ones who make the customers happy. Unfortunately we do not have free enterprise at work in the medical equipment market.

tomd62 · Post by **tomd62** » Mon Oct 11, 2010 7:53 pm

The other side of it is quackery and fraud. That's what you get with a completely unregulated market.
Dishonest suppliers come in, rip off people or sell them defective gear or tainted drugs and then leave town
or fold and start up somewhere else under another name. Some regulation is necessary, if theres poepl who think
there is too much and just as many thing there is not enough, then we are probably near the right spot.

What you need to know before seeing a DME

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