Regarding ResMed price increase contact Resmed

A few comments:

ResMed plans in September to implement strict new quidelines--including mandatory minimum pricing....

If you're a "conspiracy theorist", you could actually make a case that it was some of the Internet sellers who want to make more profit and want ResMed to increase THEIR profits. I don't recall reading that ResMed is going to actually increase the prices that the distributors and/or Internet sellers have to pay.

To counter this, a number of manufacturers have set minimum standards for service and maintenance and don't sell product to any provider--Internet or bricks-and-mortar--who doesn't meet those standards.

If you'll notice, they have set some minimum standards for service and maintenance.....which also includes the "bricks-and-mortar" provider.

If this is the case, start complaining to the manufacturers if you have a problem with your local DME. I'd like to know what their "standards policy" says, though.

Den

Wulfman wrote:If you'll notice, they have set some minimum standards for service and maintenance.....which also includes the "bricks-and-mortar" provider.

If this is the case, start complaining to the manufacturers if you have a problem with your local DME. I'd like to know what their "standards policy" says, though.

This is an excellent idea. If you have a problem with your DME write it here, (as we always like to hear what another idiot DME has done to a client) copy and paste it in an email to Resmed. Even if it doesn't involve Resmed products it still has to do with poor service from a brick & mortar DME which in all likelihood still sells Resmed products. Maybe flooding them with DME horror stories will wise them up to what actually happens in real life brick and mortar DMEs.

When you do email you should check the checkboxes that indicate you want a "delivery notification" and a "read notification" be sent back to you. This is the only way other than a written reply back from them that they even looked at your email.

Wulfman wrote:If you're a "conspiracy theorist", you could actually make a case that it was some of the Internet sellers who want to make more profit and want ResMed to increase THEIR profits.

On first reflection you might think this but upon closer scrutiny wouldn't you think that the Internet sellers would be shooting themselves in the foot In most cases a mask can be returned to a brick and mortar DME in exchange for another mask whereas you can't do this with online sales. I guess that is the one and only advantage to brick & mortar DMEs.

Darth Vader Look wrote:

Wulfman wrote:If you're a "conspiracy theorist", you could actually make a case that it was some of the Internet sellers who want to make more profit and want ResMed to increase THEIR profits.

On first reflection you might think this but upon closer scrutiny wouldn't you think that the Internet sellers would be shooting themselves in the foot In most cases a mask can be returned to a brick and mortar DME in exchange for another mask whereas you can't do this with online sales. I guess that is the one and only advantage to brick & mortar DMEs.

Wow, your DME lets you return opened masks? Mine won't allow an open product in the building.

Sleepy-in-AL wrote:

Darth Vader Look wrote:

Wulfman wrote:If you're a "conspiracy theorist", you could actually make a case that it was some of the Internet sellers who want to make more profit and want ResMed to increase THEIR profits.

On first reflection you might think this but upon closer scrutiny wouldn't you think that the Internet sellers would be shooting themselves in the foot In most cases a mask can be returned to a brick and mortar DME in exchange for another mask whereas you can't do this with online sales. I guess that is the one and only advantage to brick & mortar DMEs.

Wow, your DME lets you return opened masks? Mine won't allow an open product in the building.

Darth Vader Look wrote:

Wulfman wrote:If you're a "conspiracy theorist", you could actually make a case that it was some of the Internet sellers who want to make more profit and want ResMed to increase THEIR profits.

On first reflection you might think this but upon closer scrutiny wouldn't you think that the Internet sellers would be shooting themselves in the foot In most cases a mask can be returned to a brick and mortar DME in exchange for another mask whereas you can't do this with online sales. I guess that is the one and only advantage to brick & mortar DMEs.

DVL,

With regard to the pricing, we don't know what the "mandatory minimum pricing" is or would be. It seems to me that with all the weird business decisions that ResMed has been making lately, that they're shooting themselves in the feet, too.....SO, why not have a "shoot youself in the foot" contest and see how STUPID everybody can be?
Who knows.....maybe the "brick and mortar" DMEs will say "Hey, this isn't fair....those Internet sellers are making more profit than we are because they don't have the overhead we do.....we want to raise our prices even more!"
From reading some of the articles in the HME News site, there's already a "rift" between the small HMEs and the "Big Dogs" (Apria, et al). There's a bunch of HMEs that are closing (getting out of the business) due to various factors including (new and proposed) government regs and Medicare rules. Some of them are (as discussed before) getting caught and fined for illegal activities (kickbacks). So, there's a lot of turmoil going on in that industry. This "price fixing" and the international sales restrictions imposed by ResMed seem to me to be indications of a business that's paranoid about "something". There's a vast, untapped market for these products.....prices SHOULD be going DOWN.....not up. Their business logic is SCREWY.

Den

Sleepless on LI wrote:

Sleepy-in-AL wrote:

Darth Vader Look wrote:

Wulfman wrote:If you're a "conspiracy theorist", you could actually make a case that it was some of the Internet sellers who want to make more profit and want ResMed to increase THEIR profits.

On first reflection you might think this but upon closer scrutiny wouldn't you think that the Internet sellers would be shooting themselves in the foot In most cases a mask can be returned to a brick and mortar DME in exchange for another mask whereas you can't do this with online sales. I guess that is the one and only advantage to brick & mortar DMEs.

Wow, your DME lets you return opened masks? Mine won't allow an open product in the building.