Suggestions for Replacing S7?

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
JasonFTL
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Suggestions for Replacing S7?

Post by JasonFTL » Fri Jun 01, 2012 11:28 am

My beloved S7 (which I received outright from my last, and better, insurance carrier) died last night after giving over 20,000 hours of service, and I'm looking for a replacement. My present DME has generously offered me the use of a Tango, but will not give me a more advanced ResMed unit (like the S8 or S9). Looks like I'm going to have to pay cash for a new one, but the cost of a new ResMed machine is rather prohibitive. Any suggestions for a replacement? I've heard a lot of good things about the DeVilbiss units, but am totally unfamiliar with them.

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Pugsy
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Re: Suggestions for Replacing S7?

Post by Pugsy » Fri Jun 01, 2012 11:48 am

You might check secondwindcpap.com. The have some used machines as well as new "open box" machines.

Going on just the almighty dollar..you might consider this machine. $650 for the whole setup (type LOW into the discount code box to get final discounted price)..this is their latest model and has the heated hose like the ResMed Climateline system. There is software available for this machine (free).
https://www.cpap.com/productpage/pr-sys ... -tube.html

The Intellipap is a bit less price initially $490 but humidifier and smartlink module (for access to more than smart code data) adds another $105 to the price.
https://www.cpap.com/cpap-machine/devil ... tflex.html

For a little less money the straight cpap models of the above machines are available but the difference is not huge.

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Cereal Killer
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Re: Suggestions for Replacing S7?

Post by Cereal Killer » Fri Jun 01, 2012 11:55 am

JasonFTL wrote:My beloved S7 (which I received outright from my last, and better, insurance carrier) died last night after giving over 20,000 hours of service, and I'm looking for a replacement. My present DME has generously offered me the use of a Tango, but will not give me a more advanced ResMed unit (like the S8 or S9). Looks like I'm going to have to pay cash for a new one, but the cost of a new ResMed machine is rather prohibitive. Any suggestions for a replacement? I've heard a lot of good things about the DeVilbiss units, but am totally unfamiliar with them.
If you have insurance (or Medicare/Medicaid) that pays for a replacement machine and you can get a doctor's prescription that states, "ResMed S9 Autoset with H5i humidifier", then the DME will not be able to downgrade you to a brick.

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LSAT
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Re: Suggestions for Replacing S7?

Post by LSAT » Fri Jun 01, 2012 11:58 am

Poster jeffh has an S8 Auto for sale for $200. His post says it has 6600 hours which is over 2 years. You could PM him if you are interested.

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chunkyfrog
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Re: Suggestions for Replacing S7?

Post by chunkyfrog » Fri Jun 01, 2012 1:33 pm

DME's can upcharge for Medicare as long as they are not contracted to accept assignment.
Only one in Lincoln (out of about a dozen) is a preferred Medicare provider.
The assignment-accepting DME's are few and far between. Know who you are dealing with.

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neverbetter
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Re: Suggestions for Replacing S7?

Post by neverbetter » Fri Jun 01, 2012 2:10 pm

JasonFTL...
...what Cereal Killer said " you can get a doctor's prescription that states, "ResMed S9 Autoset with H5i humidifier", then the DME will not be able to downgrade you to a brick."
you get to upgrade every 5 years

JasonFTL
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Re: Suggestions for Replacing S7?

Post by JasonFTL » Sat Jun 02, 2012 10:48 am

Already tried that, only to be told that either I accept what the DME was offering, or the purchase would be considered "out of network," and thus subject to a deductible. I have a lousy plan, so rather than deal with their crap, I went ahead and purchased the Philips Respironics System One REMStar 60 Series Auto from cpap.com--$649 for the whole package, which I can deduct from my taxes, and at least I'll never have to worry about getting approval from anyone.

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LSAT
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Re: Suggestions for Replacing S7?

Post by LSAT » Sat Jun 02, 2012 2:11 pm

The DME is feeding you a lot of BS... The DME MUST fill the prescription AS WRITTEN just like a pharmacist does. They cannot force a different machine on you.