Interesting Pro Publica Article

[ShoshTrvls]

Has anyone seen this?  All I can say is ... I'm glad I am privileged enough to afford to pay for my own equipment and not have to deal with my insurance company and I'm glad I found this board so that I don't need to deal with my insurance company to get the benefits of CPAP therapy.

American health insurers are using a popular sleep aid to spy on their customers. Why?

[mesenteria]

Your wearable tech and smart phone do the same thing.  If you have such devices, they are providing their makers with a treasure trove of free data that is used to hone AI to figure out ways to encourage you to part with more cash.

T'was ever thus. 


If you have some spare time, go to 'cbc/under the influence' and listen to the podcasts produced by the wonderful Terry O'Rielly.  You will experience a highly entertaining and instructive series of lessons, with many well-known examples of companies that use them, on how products are marketed to consumers.

[Fats Drywaller]

Has anyone seen this?

Yes.    Recent threads here about the same article:

Sleep industry practices in the news

and

Is your CPAP spying on you?

I'm glad I am privileged enough to afford to pay for my own equipment and not have to deal with my insurance company and I'm glad I found this board so that I don't need to deal with my insurance company to get the benefits of CPAP therapy.

Hallelujah to that. However, it's usually not as bad as it might seem at first glance, because during the compliance period only your summary data are sent to the DME, and after the compliance period you can disable or remove the modem, depending on the machine. Anyone who objects to the data reporting during the compliance period might be able to negotiate with the DME to accept data on SD card instead, as the patient in the article did.

[BeepBeepNoSleep]

I found it disturbing that the guy potentially can't get a new mask because he's non-compliant, but he's non-compliant because of problems with his mask. How long until we get black market compliance machines that breath for you through the night

[Fats Drywaller]

I found it disturbing that the guy potentially can't get a new mask because he's non-compliant, but he's non-compliant because of problems with his mask. How long until we get black market compliance machines that breath for you through the night

Ha! You know, it has been suggested, and I think this is a good idea, that anyone who is in danger of becoming formally non-compliant but who wants to continue using the machine should switch the machine on in the evening, hours before bedtime, and wear the mask while doing everyday non-active things like using the computer, reading, watching TV, etc. That's a good way to get accustomed to the mask, and it logs that many breathing hours on the machine.

But if the mask is intolerable, then the patient should use a different one. If his DME is obstructive about it, as DMEs seem to be in general, then he should raise hell.

[ShoshTrvls]

Has anyone seen this?

Yes.    Recent threads here about the same article:

Sleep industry practices in the news

and

Is your CPAP spying on you?

Apologies for the re-post.  The article I posted was dated 11/25, so I didn't look back any further on the board, but from your links it looks like a version of it was originally published on 11/21.

[Fats Drywaller]

Apologies for the re-post.  The article I posted was dated 11/25, so I didn't look back any further on the board, but from your links it looks like a version of it was originally published on 11/21.

BTW, as I said in one of those other threads, if you use an S9, any spying is obvious because the plug-in modem module is obvious. The A10 is more sneaky about it.

[ShoshTrvls]

I have an S9 purchased without the knowledge of any insurance company and with no modem.  I'm good.  :-)