DMEs Take a Swing at CPAP Internet Retailing - Please help!

Snork1 makes some excellent points. And Mr. Anonymous, YOU sir do yourself a credibility disservice by not registering. Please do. I now know a few people in the DME industry and have found them to be VERY forthcoming and helpful, no matter how dumb my questions might be.

IF WE WANT TO BE HEARD...IF WE USERS FEEL A NEED TO CONTROL OUR OWN DESTINY...FIND OUT WHO IN CONGRESS USES CPAP EQUIPMENT. Write them and their staff. End of statement. That would be our best bet.

Part of our problems are $$$$$, but most of our problems are due to perceptions of situations.

Congress perceives we are doing great with their last set of "laws" so they leave the Status Quo. Their job is done, they have done well.

DME's don't always care if we are happy, but they have our congressman convinced we are doing well. Everyone is getting paid, everything must be ok.

Insurance companies lobby congress, explaining that the new technology is truly life saving, and for only another gajillion dollars they will make it available to the grareful voters, who will vote the congressional rep back in.

Users are doing ok or they would be griping to the appropriate authority figure instead of doing postings on websites. THINK about that one.

Everyone is now happy. NEXT??

You and I have to jump the communication channels to get the attention of the people WE can influence, usually Congress. Write your congressional representatives. Whether demo. or Repub. write them nice letters with SOME specifics of your problem, or ask them WHO they suggest we write to.
An educated group like this can make a difference if they want to bad enough.

There is more wit and wisdom available, but it is the 7th day.....

Thanks, Snoregirl, I'll do that. I didn't realize I could until I surfed CPAP.com and a couple of others. On one I used previously, you HAD to submit an RX even for a mask. I'm sure to protect the dealer - I have no problem with that as I understand not wanting the liability.

One other side of this issue is the fact that when you have a chronic disease, you have to be your own advocate. I have diabetes Type 2, and was diagnosed nearly 10 years ago. I have learned that the doctors, especially the family docs and internists try real hard to say they can be the only ones managing my disease. Wrong! They have too many people with too many other problems to manage, they don't have time to keep up with diabetes. In 6 months time, everything seems to change in the diabetic world! We have new drugs, new meters, new information coming out daily! It's similar with our sleeping disorders, although it doesn't seem to move quite as rapidly, not are there all the advocacy groups there are for diabetes. I think that's where our ability to use whom we want for providing us with our equipment comes in. If I have a meter I don't like, I go to my drugstore and buy a new one to try. I don't need a prescription, so I can do that. Same thing with masks. I know you need the prescription for a machine, but then, isn't that why you went for the sleep study and initial care? The internet provides us with a lot of choice, which is terrific. It somewhat relieves the burden on the brick and mortar DMEs. The fitting issue seems to be a problem, but if you're willing to shell out the money for a mask online, what's the issue?

Until and unless the brick and mortar DMEs get better training and take better care of patients needing fitting for apnea products, we will continue to use the internet. I can save money by using my HMOs DME provider, but having gone 3 times in the past and striking out all three times, I'm willing to try the internet. It couldn't be worse service than my DME and it is definitely easier than my having to drive the 40 miles one way to the one they want me to use now!

anon up there sure sounds alot like bingo.

survey no longer posted!
Guess they picked up their marbles and went home!

The survey you requested: "15580/HMEPollJuly.htm" has been deactivated.

It has been closed by the owner of the survey. This is not an error.

If you have questions regarding this survey please contact the owner of the survey directly.

Do you think maybe they didn't care for the responses?

Anonymous wrote:The biggest problem the local dmes face is the huge overhead they have to deal that the internet retailers don't. The traditional companies are regulated by state, local and industry agencies out the wazoo and back. They have to fight with doctors offices to try and get the right things ordered for the right patients.

If that's their worst problem, why do they never have what you want, and have to be forced to order it? Jim Your idea doesn't fly!

I tried to link to the survey, but I got this message:

The survey you requested: "15580/HMEPollJuly.htm" has been deactivated.

It has been closed by the owner of the survey. This is not an error.

If you have questions regarding this survey please contact the owner of the survey directly.

I'm sorry I wasn't able to participate.

Best way to stop a survey when you aren't getting the answers you nearly force fed people to choose Deactivate it

[quote="angry guest"]Who the hell do these people think they are?

They create an industry so bad that online dealers like cpap.com can do a better job from 3000 miles away than they can from next door and THEN then tell those dealers that standards need to be put into place. If there was any justice in the world they would HIRE johnny to consult for the industry and tell them how to clean up their act. Then again, they probably don't want to hear "just have your patients buy from cpap.com"

If this does happen, it will mean higher prices or no internet options at all - won't it? I don't want to go back and buy a CPAP mask for $300.

Angry Guest

_________________

It's amazing isn't it? That the DME's are trying to get the Mfg to strong arm Internet dealers.

I had made a good 2 dozen phone calls to my Insurance DME provider (APRIA) trying to get what my DOCTOR prescribed as far as CPAP equipment. I got nowhere with APRIA.

"ONE".... Yes... "ONE" call to cpap.com and I got EXACTLY what my Doctor said I needed and what I wanted. Oh ya.... much cheaper than APRIA charged too ! And got it within a few days.

I totally agree that DME suppliers should have to live up the the Standards the internet dealers have set..... For Sure !

Tim

Anonymous wrote:

wading thru the muck! wrote:The solution is the cpap.com/cpaptalk.com model... Superior service, Low prices and open forum feedback that is available to all to read and comment.

The other solution would be to let Walmart start selling XPAP and accessories - watch the price come down...

_________________

Hey, nothing wrong with WalMart selling the equipment. At least you could take it back if you weren't satisfied ! Plus, you can go to the store and actually SEE the equipment before you buy it, read the instructions etc. of the "display" model.

I'm sure that the clerks at WalMart would do as good of a job in selling the equipment as my Insurance DME (APRIA).

And like you said..... the price would be much lower.

Tim

QUOTE: "Do you think you can coerce every single person into buying online? I think not. I'm sure the online services would like to think they can grab every customer. This survay may be implying bad things about online DMEs, but aren't online DMEs implying the same about the local ones?" UNQUOTE

_________________

I have NEVER seen an online/internet DME site that mentioned anything at all about "Local" DME companies.

So I don't know where you got that idea. What IS a fact, is that local DME providers Do, in fact, bad-mouth Internet sellers.

APRIA told me that if I bought on the internet, I would not get any warranty with my machine, and no set-up and adjustment. Ya... right.....

I got EXACTLY the machine my DOCTOR PRESCRIBED along with the INSTRUCTIONS to set it up.... properly. I also got the MASK I wanted. Apria would only send out "ONE" mask.... the one THEY thought I should have.

I know there are a "few" good local DME providers, but I certainly would have expected a large company like Apria, to be able to provide good service considering the financial resources they have and the years of experience. Apparently the "experience" they have most, is the "experience" to do things WRONG.

Practice makes perfect, and when you practice doing something the wrong way for so long, you become "Perfect" at doing it wrong.

Tim

Here's my two cents:

I recently visited my DME and inquired about the price of a new ResMed UMFF mask. They said AFTER insurance, the cost to me OUT OF POCKET would be $240 for the mask, plus another $50 for the mask straps.

I can get the same damn thing from cpap.com for $140 complete.

To hell with my DME!!!!!!

I am shocked at some of the prices that you are charged by your DME companies. A DME company will never be able to beat CPAP.com or any other online company, but it is unbelievable what you are being charged. It is believable that a full face mask is $240 with the headgear included before insurance. but if $240 is your out of pocket after insurance I can't imagine what the cost is before insurance. I know approximately what the DME is paying for equipment and I can tell you that it is crazy to charge that much after insurance for a FFM. I do know that Resmed masks are high even at dealer cost, but not that high. I am sorry that there are DME companies that do that to people. I hope that you know that there are companies out there that DO NOT do that to their patients. I wouldn't be able to look a patient in the face and say your out of pockect is $240 for a mask.

Hey, nothing wrong with WalMart selling the equipment. At least you could take it back if you weren't satisfied ! Plus, you can go to the store and actually SEE the equipment before you buy it, read the instructions etc. of the "display" model.



I'm sure that the clerks at WalMart would do as good of a job in selling the equipment as my Insurance DME (APRIA).

And like you said..... the price would be much lower.

Tim

_________________

CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): cpap.com, DME[/quote]


I'm waiting for K-Mart to put that Auto Bi-PAP they ordered that the coustomer failed to pick-up on Blue Light Special for $75.95.

Fat Chance! Jim

And on the subject of Wal-Mart . . . their Vision Center provides excellent service. . . Just a few days ago, I took in a pair of glasses my daugher broke, and they fixed it on the spot by installing a new strap around the lens which had popped out. They didn't charge me a dime, even though we hadn't even purchased the glasses from Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart, in my experience, provides excellent service. Bought a riding lawn mower there years ago, and when I had problems they sent someone out immediately to fix it.

I'd guess that if they provided CPAP machines, their standard of service would be several notches above the current local DME's. Wal-Mart entering the XPAP business is probably Johnny's worst nightmare. .

Regards,
Bill