HMP accepts Medicare, Georgia Medicaid, Wellcare Medicaid, Amerigroup, Peach State Mediciad, Blue Cross Blue Shield HMO & PPO, United Healthcare, Aetna, Coventry,Cigna-State Health Benefit Plan members, Humana, TriCare, and many other private insurance plans and Medicare Replacement Plans. For a complete listing, please click on the link on our Home Page.
General Guidelines
1.An Arterial Blood Gas (ABG) Level of 55mmHg or below.
2.Oxygen Saturation level of 88% or below at rest or during exercise.
3.Oxygen Saturation level of 88% or below during sleep for greater than 5 minutes.
A patient may have an ABG of 56 to 59 mmHg or an oxygen saturation level of 89% and qualify for 90 days if they have corresponding dependent edema suggesting Congestive Heart Failure, "P" Pulmonale on EKG, and Polycythemia with HCT >57%. The patient must requalify in 60 to 90 days for continued oxygen qualification.
For all the above, the patient must be in a chronic stable state. If patient is out patient at time of oximetry, the results are good for 30 days following date of test. If patient is in patient at time of oximetry, the results are only valid for qualification purposes if the test is within 48 hours of discharge.
Follows Medicare guidleines except Medicaid does not allow exercise oxygen saturation levels to qualify a patient for oxygen-only at rest or during sleep.
OSA afflicts 20 million adult men and women in the United States. People who have OSA stop breathing repeatedly during sleep because the airway collapses.
Airway collapse may be due to such factors as a large tongue, extra tissue in the airway, or decreased muscle tone holding the airway open. As a result, air is prevented from getting into the lungs. These pauses in breathing can happen 30 times or more per hour. When healthy sleep is interrupted in this way, the risk of developing cardiovascular disease and other serious health conditions may increase.
OSA can occur in men, women and children of all ages and sizes. Most people who have OSA do not realize they suffer from the condition. Often, it is someone else who witnesses the first signs of OSA.If you or someone you know snores regularly and has one or more of the following symptoms, it may be OSA. Consider all of the following that apply, and share this list with your doctor.
Key signs and symptoms include:
• Excessive daytime sleepiness
• Loud or disruptive snoring
• Gasping or choking during sleep
Other common symptoms include:
• Grogginess and morning headaches
• Frequent urination at night
• Depression and irritability
• Obesity
• Large neck or crowding of the upper airway
• Post-menopausal women
Possible increased risk for:
• High blood pressure
• Heart disease and heart attack
• Stroke
• Fatigue-related motor vehicle and work accidents
• Decreased quality of life
The most common treatment is CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure), pronounced “see-PAP.” Other less common treatments include surgery and oral appliances, which may be effective in certain individuals. Any treatments should include weight loss if needed, exercise, and avoidance of alcohol, sedatives, and hypnotics.
PAP therapy will relieve the airway obstruction that occurs while you sleep. PAP treatment can dramatically improve the life of someone diagnosed with sleep apnea. When you wear the system every night during sleep and optimum therapy is achieved, you may experience the following benefits of treatment:
• Increased energy level and attentiveness during the day
• Fewer morning headaches
• Reduced irritability
• Improved memory
• Less waking during the night to go to the bathroom
• Increased ability to exercise
• Increased effectiveness at home or at work
• Improved overall quality of life
You will need to use your treatment every night while you sleep. If you do not, you will return to your previous level of snoring, sleep apnea, and daytime tiredness.
Untreated sleep apnea also has been shown to co-exist with a number of other medical conditions, such as:
• High blood pressure
• Heart disease
• Heart attack
• Irregular heart beat
• Stroke
Sleep apnea also may contribute to driving and work-related accidents.
See your doctor. Evaluation by a doctor specializing in sleep disorders is recommended. Have a sleep study done. A sleep study can provide the doctor with information about how you sleep and breathe. This information will help the doctor to determine your diagnosis and treatment options.
In addition to regular cleaning, you should replace your mask, tubing, filters and humidifier chamber for your CPAP or BiPAP on a routine basis. Most patients replace CPAP supplies based on when their insurance allows payment for replacement supplies. HMP uses a computerized follow up system to notify patients when they sre due for new supplies. The system (EMILY) allows patients to order replacement items over the telephone which are then shipped from our warehouse to the patient's home.
The medical equipment and supplies we provide must be prescribed by a physican who is determining the medical necessity for the equipment or supplies he or she has ordered for you. In order for us to dispense equipment or supplies, we are required by state and federal law as well as your insurance company who will pay for equipment or supplies to have a valid prescription on file. As a general rule, most prescriptions for equipment and supplies are good for 1 (one) year so it is important to regularly see your physician who prescribed your therapy so that he or she can issue an updated prescription and there will be no delays in providing equipment or supplies to you.
HMP has represntatives on call 24 hours a day, 365 days a year including all national holidays and weekends. If you have a problem that requires our assistance and the offices are closed, simply call our main number at 1-888-744-9600 or 770-533-9404, select option #1 and you will be transferred directly the cellular phone of our on call representative who will assist you. There is a messaging system on the cellular phone that our representative will respond to if he or she is unable to answer your call immediately due to a hospital cell phone use restriction or other patient situation where a call cannot be immediately accepted.