CPAPtalk.com

Thanks Johnny.
This "Guest" is not helping his profession.....so let him speak.
On one hand any business needs to make a profit to stay in business. But charging 2 to 3 times what prices should be is ridiculous. Granted, the DME suppliers usually have a lot of inventory of various kinds, but that goes with the territory......as in many other businesses. It's just that most other businesses don't have the guarantee of payment by the insurance industry for their inflated prices.

My bigger question is what CAN we do about it? I purchased all of my equipment from you folks (US Expediters/cpap.com) for two reasons. One was that I wanted to be in control of my own therapy, and the other was the cost. The way I look at it is that "it's MY body and it's MY money".
For example: My sleep "doctor" was wrong about my pressure setting. He prescribed 18cm with extra oxygen.....I'm doing just fine on 10cm and no extra oxygen.....and he can't figure out why.

By the way, you've done a great job on the web sites and this forum.

Thanks again!

Wow, a lot of strong feelings about DME's! Understandably hearing some of the issues many of you have dealt with.

I just want to say that my DME (with a change of RT) has been absolutely wonderful....my insurance won't cover most of the cost of supplies etc. and they have gone out of their way to get me discounted/cheap/free supplies when at all possible.

No, the RT isn't always available when I call. Yes, I go to them, they don't come to me, but I don't mind that at all.

So, there are some good DME's out there, as they say, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater!

regards to all.

Thought some of you newer users/members/guests (and some that went through it the first time) might be entertained by the subjects contained in this thread from over a year ago. It also lasted for over a month.
Some of the subjects are DMEs, price fixing, posting etiquette and other things that have come up (again) lately.

Enjoy!

SOME SUBJECTS NEVER DIE wrote:Thought some of you newer users/members/guests (and some that went through it the first time) might be entertained by the subjects contained in this thread from over a year ago. It also lasted for over a month.
Some of the subjects are DMEs, price fixing, posting etiquette and other things that have come up (again) lately.

Enjoy!

Thanks. This was enjoyable and informative at the same time.

Wow, a long thread. Obviously, a lot of people on this forum are not happy with their DME. At the end of the day, it's the customer that says how a business is performing. Microsoft and the oil companies may be exceptions!

I love the DME industry. I've delivered oxygen many times in the middle of the night because someone needed it. Sometimes just so the patient could get through the night without having to go to the hospital and often so the patient doesn't have to gasp for air while dying. Don't get me wrong, it's not fun waking up from a deep sleep and find an address but the satisfaction of "helping" anothe person is what it's all about.

DMEs do face many challenges. The cost of doing business is rising and remibursment is being cut at the same time. There are ways around that and still meet the needs of the patient. All it takes is better communication with the patient.

People want good service and a good product at a fair price.

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CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): DME

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CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): DME

[quote="DME"]Ok, I am not the author of this, but it belongs in this thread as well. Please try to understand some of these points the guest makes when it comes to DME pricing.

" I hope I can address the DME haters for a moment. Ive come across many comments condemning them as evil, etc and wanted to share some insight on the industry.

1) Prices are not determined by the DME company. Anyone in business would love to charge millions of dollars for something that cost one dollar but the market wont allow it. The insurance companies each determine their own allowed amounts for medical equipment. Then it is up to the local DME provider to decide if they will participate, or accept, those allowables.

2) It doesnt matter what a DME company bills your insurance co. Insurance co only pay the amount they allowed for the equipment minus your co pay, deductibles, etc.

3) Many of you make comments concerning the service EXPECTED from DME providers. Just a point of mention, DME cos are paid for the equipment they provide, not service. Your healthcare is provided by your Dr. not the DME co! Very few insurances actually have AND PAY for a "Respiratory Therapist Visit" code. Many DME companies cannot afford to hire a Respiratory Therapist (in my area salaries start at $50k a year full benefits expected). Just because they are clinically trained in respiratory therapy doesnt mean they are going to give you a treatment. They are used as a marketing tool for the DME company. There is nothing that a therapist can do regarding mask fitting, machine selection, etc, that a properly trained technician couldnt do!

4) Pricing on the internet is bottom of the barrel, basterdised pricing! Most websites that you find have sold equipment that is given to sleep labs for free! Or a sleep lab tech might offer himself a five finger discount and sell masks on his own. Manufacturers give their product away as samples to sleep labs. Just like your Dr receives sample mediciations. Imagine if employees could take those free meds and start a website and sell them online? What price would you expect to pay for your viagra? Its easy to drop prices when the product is free isnt it?

5) Most DME companies will tell you that internet pricing is below cost! I can verify this, and manufacturers are thankfully trying to correct this. Enjoy your discounted mask prices while they last, cause you can expect them to go up! Margins for legitimate companies trying to compete are non existant and even johnny goodman who apparantly owns this site has attested to that, thats why there is no mask return policy.

6) How much money does the evil DME company make? When look at your insurance EOBs, how much did your insurance pay the DME? Most likely your in the <$100 range for a rental. The rental period is capped, so that item becomes yours in 10 to 15 months, considering your particular policy.

Pause here and consider, how much does it cost to rent a car? $40 a day for a compact? is that ford focus worth the $1200 a month the rental company collects on it? Would you pay less that 1/4 that price if you bought it? Would your local car rental agency give you the car, let you own it, if you rented it for a year straight?

Consider a hotel room, $100 a night. How does your home compare in cost to a hotel room? Thats $3000 a month, could you do better buying a home?

DME companies get paid what the insurance dictates and takes a minimum of 60 days to an average of 120 days to collect their rental fees. Can you go to mcdonalds and eat a meal and pay for it 6 months later? Can you name ONE OTHER BUSINESS that will allow you to do this? Interest free??

And then you demand a Respiratory Therapist available at your beckoning? You expect someone to be on call to poo poo you when you have a complaint at midnight? What could that person do to satisfy you, run over to your home with a suitcase full of masks for you to select?

DOES YOUR DOCTOR COME SEE YOU AT HOME? ? ?

How many members here to go their Drs and dont even see them? How many are attended by Nurses or Physicians assistants?

How many of you can get a service man to come over and just LOOK at your refridgerator for less than $75?

Thats all a DME co gets paid, total, and you expect them to provide the service AND THE EQUIPMENT?

I say, if your that demanding, open your wallet and get it from this site, cash. You still dont get the service, cpap.com is not going to answer your question at midnight like you expect, lol. They wont even take your mask back! So, either lower your expectations to a more reasonable level or just deal with the fact that you are just a little too damn demanding.

PS if you dont know that your sleep lab got paid over $2500 for a TEST, compare that to the expectations of your DME provider who over the coarse of a YEAR might make half that amount, provide you with the equipment, and care, EVEN THOUGH YOU DONT THINK IT ENOUGH, and be on the hook to replace or repair your equipemnt during that period of time. Selfish bastards they are huh? "

Snoredog wrote:This is the funniest thing I've read all day. Thanks for the laugh.

Snoredog,

Glad you enjoyed it. I was actually the one that resurrected it this afternoon. I was looking for something else and ran across it......thought it would illustrate that some subjects get recycled periodically.

Best wishes,

Den

Jetmech, You stirred up a hornet's nest with this one. I too have Tricare and recently picked up a Remstar Pro 2 from a DME. The Tricare-DME contract price for any CPAP machine is about $ 1,200. It costs $ 545 from cpap.com. I have yet to figure out where I am going to get $ 655 of value added from the DME. (See my post "Frustrated in Oklahoma.")

Back to chin straps. The DME didn't give me one. And I am not about to incur a $ 55 or $ 60 charge for a $ 15 item. So I ordered one from CPAP.com for $ 21 including shipping and in the meantime am using denture strips to seal my lips. Which by the way works pretty good.

Once I get beyond the learning curve, I intend to write the Tricare Management Activity, setting forth the cost particulars of outright purchase versus my DME's charges and asking for a fraud/waste/abuse investigation.