How to bypass doctor wait times

New user. I had an appointment with a pulmonologist/sleep specialist 2 weeks ago and have been scheduled for a sleep study the end of this week. Highly suspected sleep apnea; my dad has it (is it genetic?) and heavy snoring for years. Symptoms are severe at this point.

Unfortunately, the lead time for all this seems ridiculously long. The first availability for an appointment is 6 weeks after the sleep study, and even if appointments were available, the doctor said it would take 2 weeks or so just to analyze the sleep study. And based on my reading here, it could take weeks/months to get a machine after that.

Is there any way to bypass this? I see sites where a machine can be rented. I also see sites where they can be purchased relatively inexpensively. I'm happy to pay out of pocket, however a prescription is needed on all these sites.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Welcome to the forum.

Where are you located?

There are people on the forum who have gone the DIY route for self diagnose and self treat. It can be done successfully.
Usually they buy the machine privately from someone who doesn't care that an official RX isn't available. Most of the time the machines are gently used. Would you be happy with a slightly used low hour machine?

I am in NYC.

I generally don't mind buying a used machine, but of course I'd prefer to rent something in case the machine I buy is ultimately not the correct one for me. If I buy, I would like a top of the line machine (auto, better data, etc).

Outside of buying a used machine, is there some way to get a prescription quickly online?

With a prescription - what is the best place to rent a machine?

Is there any danger/risk in using a machine before a proper diagnosis? If not, why are prescriptions even required?

I know nothing about the best places to rent machines in the US and you will need a RX.
It's not something that is commonly done in the US. Now in other areas of the world places do rent more often.

You won't find any online place that will give/sell you a RX without some sort of sleep study though.
There are several online suppliers of cpap equipment that will help you get the RX by giving you a home sleep study though and then their doctor creates the RX.

jjk34w wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 24, 2019 6:53 am

Is there any danger/risk in using a machine before a proper diagnosis? If not, why are prescriptions even required?

No real danger unless you have some serious lung issues listed in the contraindications for cpap therapy itself...and they are really serious and it is unlikely that anyone would have those issues and not know about it.
Why is the RX required? That's been debated for years but it is what the FDA and medical profession decided some years ago...and also think about it....if RX wasn't required here in the US then insurance is unlikely to pay for it as a covered expense. Insurance rarely wants to pay for anything that isn't RX.

If you buy a machine privately and you end up needing something else...buy smart the first time and then sell it on the forum.

Forum member LSAT has a slightly used AirCurve 10 VAuto machine right now....It will cover almost any needs you might come up with that might be special unless you have a bad case of central apnea along with OSA.
viewtopic/t176204/AirCurve-10-VAUTOFOR-SALE.html
It is a step above regular cpap/apap machines...it's a bilevel machine...better exhale relief...more customization available to fine tune it to your own respiration pattern....full data and compatible with free and easy to use software.
Covers all potential bases where you might be needing a different machine except if you have central apnea issues.

If you end up with central issues....you can sell it on the forum for what you paid for it and not lose money.

jjk34w wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 24, 2019 5:49 am

Highly suspected sleep apnea; my dad has it (is it genetic?) and heavy snoring for years.

I've been told by my sleep doctor that yes, it is genetic.

I don't fit the stereotype body-type for sleep apnea - female 5'6" 130 lbs, and I have sleep apnea. I knew one of my brothers did, but he was an extremely loud snorer so that was no surprise. After I got my CPAP set-up, in talking with that brother, found out another brother also has sleep apnea. I guess we don't generally share our health issues so I didn't know. None of my brothers are obese (common stereotype).

In my family, 3 out of 4 siblings have sleep apnea. Kinda funny when we were all visiting our parents and we each had our CPAP machines! The 4th sibling strongly suspects but doesn't have the insurance or money to find out. I asked my sleep doctor if this was "unusual" and he said not really, we apparently all have very similar anatomy and it is genetic.

You can turn the forced wait time into a plus, by doing your research.
When the time comes, you can insist on a machine that will best serve YOU,
rather than yield the biggest profit for the DME.
If you already have a machine, you can hold out as long as necessary.
It is best to have a backup anyway--("Murphy" is always on call.)

My husband went through the Medicare requirements for machines. He started with an auto-pap, had another study to qualify for bi-pap, then another study for the machine for central apnea. So, 3 sleep studies, but Medicare paid for all the studies and different machines. We have an excellent doctor who always asked for top-of-the-line machines. It took a lot of time, but he eventually had what he needed and all covered by insurance.

Once he had the first machine, he started having therapy even though it needed fine tuning. Although he did not believe he had apnea and had refused the testing for a long time, he quickly realized that treatment helped. In no time he started recommending sleep studies to everyone, including strangers at the grocery or anywhere he met someone. Made me laugh at the turn-around.

You will get lots of advice here. Consider all of it and see what works for you. Faithful use of your xpap will improve and extend your life. Good luck.

Catnapper - Joanie

chunkyfrog wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 24, 2019 8:38 am

You can turn the forced wait time into a plus, by doing your research.
When the time comes, you can insist on a machine that will best serve YOU,
rather than yield the biggest profit for the DME.
If you already have a machine, you can hold out as long as necessary.
It is best to have a backup anyway--("Murphy" is always on call.)

One caveat here. If you get an insurance covered machine, then you must use that one and hold any other machine acquired in reserve because insurance usually requires that you use the machine they provide a certain amount (compliance) before they will pay for it.

And consider the co-payments and deductibles you may have to pay out of pocket with insurance. If you already bought a machine that works well, you may not want to incur those expenses.

This is something I considered because things are dragging along for me .. kind of pricey but it seems like you can get things done much quicker! https://singularsleep.com/pages/sleep-a ... gle.com%2F