Employer is stepping up or is Big brother???

StuUnderPressure wrote:

Janknitz wrote:Are they going to have control over which machines you may have and work with a DME so if you want a fully data capable machine you can't get it?? Will you have repercussions for adjusting your own pressure? Those would be my concerns.

IMHO, that is EXACTLY what will happen.

If the so called "experts" tell the company the S9 Escape is all that he needs to provide the company with the compliance information they need, guess what he will be provided with.

And since those same "experts" believe & will tell the company that pressure canNOT be changed without the Sleep Doctor providing another prescription, I can forsee the company terminating someone for changing their own pressure. Not like those changes can be hidden from the company since they will have access to everything.

I think company having full access could be a bad thing. They could use any pressure changes, or even 1 nite of non-compliance (which should not happen, but probably does for everyone, sometimes) or mask leaks against an employee. My hubby is going for his titration study this Fri nite & will be new to CPAP. He does not drive over the road, but is just as lethal in town making local deliveries. I want him on therapy, not getting tired and sleepy. I think the one thing that has stopped him until now is how it will affect his CDL. Since he has talked to other drivers on CPAP who hold a CDL, and HE feels 'safe' proceeding, he has made me proud by going forward. He would never have come forward and done the right thing if he even thought his employer could get the results of his test, let alone his compliance. His employer would rather fire drivers who have been there a long time, since they make more, and hire new drivers who get less pay. Knowing employer has access could scare a lot of drivers who work for companies long term. In this economy, companies are pinching pennies, and long-term drivers make more, so hiring new drivers makes ecomonic sense. For that reason alone I would think company having access to SD card is a little risky. If you are 100% compliant, with no leaks, great AHI & always get around 7-8 hrs of sleep, you probably have nothing to worry about. I personally would be nervous of my employer monitoring my health so closely. Kind of like division between church & state, I would want my health & employer kept separate. That's part of the reason for the HIPPA law. Just my opinion.
Jen

StuUnderPressure wrote:

Janknitz wrote:Are they going to have control over which machines you may have and work with a DME so if you want a fully data capable machine you can't get it?? Will you have repercussions for adjusting your own pressure? Those would be my concerns.

IMHO, that is EXACTLY what will happen.

If the so called "experts" tell the company the S9 Escape is all that he needs to provide the company with the compliance information they need, guess what he will be provided with.

And since those same "experts" believe & will tell the company that pressure canNOT be changed without the Sleep Doctor providing another prescription, I can forsee the company terminating someone for changing their own pressure. Not like those changes can be hidden from the company since they will have access to everything.

That would be expensive to implement. It would probably also be illegal in many places. And stupid. A brick does not record data so they would have no data to control with.
If a company is going to go through all the expense to help drivers be better drivers it is stupid to then not a) work with their good drivers to make it work, b) to REMOVE data which helps make the system work.

love the input..I was told they carry all the major brand's..I'm not worry'd about that..I'm not sure who the medical company that is contract'd..This group's work under the employee name.Knowing what my employer does now&has done for there driver's it will a great program& I'm looking forward to the freebies.I think they have stepped up to the plate on this one..They see the importance of good sleep for there driver's.

The few hundred dollars in mask ain't worth it. Buy your own.

Well,Truck Driver's will not have a choice soon..The Federal Transportation is reall coming down hard.My Employer is going ahead now..Welcome to Obamacare&the USA.Before you know it they going to tell us when we can crap.

cosmo wrote:The few hundred dollars in mask ain't worth it. Buy your own.

Oh, fer cryin' out loud!!!!! This all started BEFORE Obama's presidency and "Obamacare"!!

Wow, we can see whose ox just got gored!

Seriously, you work in what has become a regulated industry. If you had driven a jet plane instead of a truck, that would have happened some time ago. It's just that sleep apnea as regards public safety is just now being recognized for its importance. A friend was in a horrible accident several years ago on the freeway nearby in the middle of the day. The driver behind him fell asleep and failed to brake when the traffic suddenly came to a screeching halt. There was no inquiry as to WHY the driver fell asleep in the middle of the day. Do you suppose he/she might have been a sleep apneic? We'll never know. But if he/she had been driving an over the road truck loaded to capacity with machine parts or gravel or something, the results could have been grave indeed. Pun intended. Like they say, the pilot (or the truck driver) is the first one on the scene of a crash.

So, privacy and HIPPA and civil liberties arguments aside, I don't think it's asking too much to make sure that airline pilots and truck drivers aren't either worked long hours, or allowed to fly/drive with untreated sleep disorders when public safety is at stake. And you can bet, with what is at stake, that they won't be giving you a cheap no-data brick of a machine, or contracting with a marginal sleep center. One lawsuit would clear that up. What IS needed are stringent safeguards as to how that data is accessed and used. We're clearly not there yet, but somnambulating along in that general direction.

Since truckers have their own network, which is currently addressing OSA concerns,
they are probably ahead of your average Joe in resources to handle this responsibly.
Not as badly "mushroomed" as the rest of us.

Obamacare will be to your rescue soon.lol

chunkyfrog wrote:Since truckers have their own network, which is currently addressing OSA concerns,
they are probably ahead of your average Joe in resources to handle this responsibly.
Not as badly "mushroomed" as the rest of us.

Statistically, fear will kill you long before the thing you fear.
You are really bitter about the election results. Get over it!

O'h I'm over it...The one's who voted will see what type of person he is..But,Again they will be blind'd&look the other way..There will be no more Old America..And for the record I have insurance& I don't need to pay for someone else to get free care.I have work'd for everything I have.Just burn's my A.. of the people out there that do nothing except ride free on the working class&want more freeb's

chunkyfrog wrote:Statistically, fear will kill you long before the thing you fear.
You are really bitter about the election results. Get over it!

Kenneth P. wrote:O'h I'm over it...The one's who voted will see what type of person he is..But,Again they will be blind'd&look the other way..There will be no more Old America..And for the record I have insurance& I don't need to pay for someone else to get free care.I have work'd for everything I have.Just burn's my A.. of the people out there that do nothing except ride free on the working class&want more freeb's

chunkyfrog wrote:Statistically, fear will kill you long before the thing you fear.
You are really bitter about the election results. Get over it!

Ditto, too bad I damaged my health working to secure my healthcare. It doesn't matter 12/21/2012, will be the end of days anyway. Jim

It tickles me pink that you don't mind at all the leeches who siphon off millions from those who actually make the product(s) and who destroy companies in the process. Those leeches are nothing but middlemen between those who produce the product and the consumer who buys the product yet they drive up and siphon off the profits.

Or that you not only drank their Kool-Aid; but came back for seconds.
Meanwhile the people you did keep in office are willing to throw us all under the bus just to prove they were right!

You know I tried that one.Didn't work to well for me..Loss my A..!!!You know the reason these people do this.Is because our wonderful government allow's it..I alway's ask people when they say crap like this..If the table's were turn'd&you were sitting back behind that desk&you were getting your pocket's fill'd you wouldn't have or see a problem would you?

Slinky wrote:It tickles me pink that you don't mind at all the leeches who siphon off millions from those who actually make the product(s) and who destroy companies in the process. Those leeches are nothing but middlemen between those who produce the product and the consumer who buys the product yet they drive up and siphon off the profits.