DME ripping me off?

I like to tell folks that if you look at a DME ONLY as a place to get your "stuff", you're better off. The problem is that people rely on the DME for HELP, and that's where they get into trouble. That being said, you need to educate yourself.... cause' those suckers (DMEs) will rip you off and give you bogus information. We all have to get our supplies somewhere and you'll get to the point of not taking any crap off them ("Just gimme' my stuff').

Sheriff

Sheriff Buford wrote:"Just gimme' my stuff'

Sheriff

Well said ! ! !

Guest wrote:

Janknitz wrote:If you have Medicare you won't get any reimbursement if you buy your own machine online (unless you use one of the online DME's approved by Medicare).

please list any online dme's approved by medicare
that would be a great help
thanks

Medicare approved DME online:
http://WWW.NationwideMedical.com

I have used them for several years & was surprised to find they were one of the DME's that got one of the Medicare 'bids'. They are apparently overwhelmed right now. Just switched my hubby to them (he has United Healthcare) & he didn't get the same great service I had been getting. Oh, and don't go by their website, its not kept updated, ever. I call & tell them what I want & they get it.

Overall, I still will use them for basic insurance based reimbursed stuff. Everything I order out-of-pocket is from cpap.com, our
hosts.

Sheriff Buford wrote:I like to tell folks that if you look at a DME ONLY as a place to get your "stuff", you're better off. The problem is that people rely on the DME for HELP, and that's where they get into trouble. That being said, you need to educate yourself.... cause' those suckers (DMEs) will rip you off and give you bogus information. We all have to get our supplies somewhere and you'll get to the point of not taking any crap off them ("Just gimme' my stuff').

Sheriff

Hi Sheriff,

This is an off topic response but your excellent post reminds me of the constant point that was made on antidepressant withdrawal boards to stop expecting psychiatrists to be understanding of psych med withdrawal symptoms. The only purpose in visiting most of them was to simply obtain the prescription and stop expecting them to be something they were incapable of being.

Anyway, your post is a great reminder for life in general in not expecting people or organizations to be something they aren't. I admit I don't always follow my own advice but I try.

49er

After reading the problems OP and others are experiencing, I'm extremely thankful my DME gives me fantastic customer service. Anytime I feel I'm losing grip of a situation, a friendly visit to them solves things before it gets to the problem stage. It helps immensely that my point of contact is also a CPAP user. After reading both data cards from my S9 AutoSet and S8 VPAP ST, she agrees that I need an update to an ASV machine. Yes, I realize this update is going to be more expensive. She is coordinating with the sleep doctor to make sure the RX he sends them is correct so that Medicare will pay. I'm sure there's more money in somebody's pocket somewhere, but this is where I'm thankful I'm retired military and the 20% is paid by them. So, for me, the 80/20, thus far, hasn't been a bother.

It's sad OP and others in this thread are getting such lousy service, and have to fight for everything. While its said that money is the root of all evil. I also believe good communication takes care of most problems.

apw

apw5746 wrote: It's sad OP and others in this thread are getting such lousy service, and have to fight for everything. While its said that money is the root of all evil. I also believe good communication takes care of most problems.

Mine seemed great at first. Really nice when I got my machine. Called me after a month to check on me. Helped me get a second mask, no problem. Then I asked about smaller headgear. They told me it didn't come in a small. I forwarded an email from Resmed with the order number and a link to the same product on cpap.com. They told me they couldn't order it. I contacted a different dme and had my small headgear the next week. At the end of 2 months, I received an envelope with a new SD card and a return envelope to send in my first SD card. I copied it and sent it in. (I made compliance, and i knew I would). I never heard from them again. They never asked if i needed any supplies or anything. I never told them I had switched to another DME. They could have assumed I quit using the machine. I suspect for them, all they really care about is getting somebody to compliance so that they get paid. And that's all.

Sheriff Buford wrote:I like to tell folks that if you look at a DME ONLY as a place to get your "stuff", you're better off. The problem is that people rely on the DME for HELP, and that's where they get into trouble. That being said, you need to educate yourself.... cause' those suckers (DMEs) will rip you off and give you bogus information. We all have to get our supplies somewhere and you'll get to the point of not taking any crap off them ("Just gimme' my stuff').

Sheriff

I have to agree. I have only one DME option. They are a "supplies provider only". I call the same person every 3 months and order 3 months of supplies. I expect nothing more or less, and so far, so good.

Even worse, I am a capitated member (HMO), so the DME gets paid whether I have supplies or not. They never, ever call me. It is what it is.

I'm grateful for this forum, since learning to manage our own therapy is best, IMHO. Thank you all for being here.

jencat824 wrote:

Guest wrote:

Janknitz wrote:If you have Medicare you won't get any reimbursement if you buy your own machine online (unless you use one of the online DME's approved by Medicare).

please list any online dme's approved by medicare
that would be a great help
thanks

Medicare approved DME online:
NationwideMedical dot com

I have used them for several years & was surprised to find they were one of the DME's that got one of the Medicare 'bids'. They are apparently overwhelmed right now. Just switched my hubby to them (he has United Healthcare) & he didn't get the same great service I had been getting. Oh, and don't go by their website, its not kept updated, ever. I call & tell them what I want & they get it.

Overall, I still will use them for basic insurance based reimbursed stuff. Everything I order out-of-pocket is from cpap com, our
hosts.

am not sure it is worth the risk after reading this...
yelp dot com/biz/nationwide-medical-inc-agoura-hills

would love to hear from other customers first