Renting vs. buying machine

Just called Aetna about charges for my new S9 and I found out that I had been mis-understanding some things. The DME who told me I would be renting forever was out-of-network. In-network I will own after 15 months. That means that if I had started renting in the beginning instead of buying the unit that malfunctioned last week I would have only paid the out-of-pocket for it for two years instead of three, as it will now go into 2012 before the 15 months are up. Another disadvantage to buying is that it takes more time to get a replacement machine - even under warranty. With a rental I probably wouldn't even need a back-up and I'd be back on therapy by now and not feeling like a dishrag. Oh well . . .

It really depends on your insurance and what your copays are. If you have to pay a copay each month of the rental period, you may wind up spending more than what the machine can be bought for outright. And if it carries over to a new calendar year with a new deductible to be met, you have that to contend with, too. I am happy I bought my machine because my insurance would not approve an autoset nor a machine that had flex (go figure)....so I bought my own.

I don't think anyone can say one is better than the other because there are too many variables based on coverage, copays, deductibles, and convenience. Personally, I also like not having anyone looking over my shoulder to see if I am 'compliant,' either

I checked with my insurance company before picking up my machine. I made sure that the DME was on their "approved" list. But more importantly, I checked to see what the requirements were on the machine. My Dr was kind enough to write a prescription based on what I asked him to include, so I was able to get the machine I wanted (and knew the DME had in stock). My insurance requires two months rental and then it can be converted to a sale. I am in my third month now, and noticed that the DME was still charging a rental price. I called the insurance company to double check, (yep, two months), then called the DME and asked them to convert it. I just got a phone call this morning from the DME letting me know that yes, it has been converted to purchase, BUT, I missed the November 25th billing date, so it will be billed December 25th. No problem, since it is still within this calendar year, and my insurance will pay 80% of whatever they consider to be "allowed" amount. The insurance company had NOT told the DME that it could be converted. The DME assumed it was "rent to own", and they bill that out in 10 months. IF I had not followed up on this, come January, I would have been paying 100% of the charges for the remaining months until it was purchased. It pays to know what your insurance will cover (and when), and then be sure to follow up on it!

This does vary depending on insurance carrier and policy. I have BCBS it was cheaper for me to buy outright and pay ONE co-pay than to rent for 13 months. I have a high deductible and I had met that deductible. If I had chosen to rent. I would have had a small co-pay for two months...and bang the being of the next year the deductible would have reset and I would be responsible for 100% of the rental costs until I might my $3k plus deductible.

So for me $303 was a bargain instead of having to pay about $100 out of pocket for 2 months...then having to eat the remaining $100 a month for the remaining 11 months.

My DME was nice enough to go over the different options I had...buying vs renting. I would much rather make a purchase than rent. You always end up paying 2-3 times more than the machine cost when you rent. My insurance also replaces machine on as needed basis...so even if there was a problem I was covered. Add to that my DME puts a 3 year warranty on the machine...so if it fails they will fix or replace the machine with the same or similar machine.

I love my S9. I would not use anything else.

msradar65 wrote: I would much rather make a purchase than rent. You always end up paying 2-3 times more than the machine cost when you rent.

Not necessarily. My DME will take the price of the machine, divide it by 10, and bill it in 10 monthly installments.

And like I said, I was able to convert it to purchase now, so I will not encounter the high "must meet a new deductible" costs starting in January,

jbn3boys wrote:

msradar65 wrote: I would much rather make a purchase than rent. You always end up paying 2-3 times more than the machine cost when you rent.

Not necessarily. My DME will take the price of the machine, divide it by 10, and bill it in 10 monthly installments.

And like I said, I was able to convert it to purchase now, so I will not encounter the high "must meet a new deductible" costs starting in January,

Who is your DME? I am in your area and have worked with several DMEs....I never ran across this.

LSAT wrote:

jbn3boys wrote:

msradar65 wrote: I would much rather make a purchase than rent. You always end up paying 2-3 times more than the machine cost when you rent.

Not necessarily. My DME will take the price of the machine, divide it by 10, and bill it in 10 monthly installments.

And like I said, I was able to convert it to purchase now, so I will not encounter the high "must meet a new deductible" costs starting in January,

Who is your DME? I am in your area and have worked with several DMEs....I never ran across this.

I'm actually in NW Wisconsin, and it is a locally owned company, not a big brand one. Sorry.
I do really like them. They even replaced a broken mask part this week at no charge, even though I kind of question whether it really was within the 90 day window for the warranty. Yep, I'm sticking with them!