What Pro2 is Up2

With 2015 nearing, we wanted to take this opportunity to address an important insurance issue that a new calendar year always brings. Whether you have an individual or employer-sponsored Health Insurance plan, there are certain things to keep in mind as we close out 2014.

There are many qualifications and limitations regarding what health insurance covers and to what extent. Certain requirements must be satisfied before the insurance company will begin paying benefits. A deductible is a fixed dollar amount the policy holder must pay out-of-pocket for eligible services before the insurance company will make payment on covered medical expenses. [For example, if your policy has a $500.00 deductible, you must pay $500.00 worth of healthcare expenses before your insurance will start paying out.]

For most policies, the medical plan’s deductible is based on a calendar year regardless of when your coverage became effective. All calendar year deductibles will therefore be renewed on January 1, 2015. If you are unsure about your policy, please contact your insurance carrier for more information.

Update Your Information:
We're dedicated to providing the highest quality products, equipment, and services to our customers. In order to do so, we rely not only on our tremendous staff, but also on the very patients that we service. It's extremely important that you keep your account with us updated.

Insurance Policy: It’s always a good idea to keep yourself as informed as possible when it comes to your insurance policy. It’s just as important to keep our office up-to-date on any changes that may take place. Many insurance policies renew, change, or terminate at the end of the year. This could mean changes in your financial responsibility as it relates to our products and services.

Contact Information: The quality of our service also relies on being able to communicate with our customers. Any change in your address or phone number (temporary or permanent) should be reported to our office as soon as possible to avoid potential issues with deliveries, billing, etc.

Payment Information: Please keep our Billing Office notified of any changes in your billing information. This includes billing address changes, new debit/credit card information (new card number, expiration date and/or security code), and new bank information.

Now, health care professionals and patients can quickly help achieve optimal delivery from MDIs and DPIs with the In-Check® DIAL.

This accurate low-range inspiratory flow meter stimulates the air flow resistance of the most popular inhalers. It enables clinicians to train patients to use more or less inspiratory force, to achieve their optimal flow rate with a particular MDI or DPI device. This provides best deposition of medication into the lungs.

The In-Check DIAL is a hand held inspiratory flow measurement device with a dial top. The DIAL orifices have been designed to stimulate the resistance of popular inhaler devices such as MDIs, DPIs, Turbuhaler®, and Diskus®. Custom resistance adapters are available.

The In-Check DIAL is supplied with a sterilizable plastic mouthpiece and an adapter which enables you to use a pediatric mouthpiece, if necessary.

The transparent body permits a visual inspection before use, and if required, one-way disposable mouthpiece or a bacterial/viral filter can be used to minimize the risk of cross infection.



In-Check DIAL Inhaler Technique Training and Assessment Tool. Retrieved from http://alliancetechmedical.com/products/check-dial-training-device/.

COPD has risen from the fourth leading cause of death to the third, after heart disease and cancer, and has gained in prevalence over the past decade, growing from 6 to 7 percent of adults ages 40 years and older, according to a new study.

The study, Continuing to Confront COPD International Patient Survey, was conducted by researchers at Abt SRBI and funded by healthcare and pharmaceutical firm GSK. The new research is an update of its Confronting COPD survey conducted 10 years ago, and tracks the growing problem of COPD in the United States.

Additional findings:

- Twenty-six percent of US participants reported visiting the emergency room as a result of their COPD, with an additional 17 percent hospitalized within the last year — that’s a statistic similar to that reported in Mexico, and higher rate than reported in most European countries surveyed.

- Many patients may be underestimating the severity of their symptoms. While more than half (54 percent) of U.S. participants reported clinically significant dyspnea (shortness of breath), the majority (70 percent) classified their COPD as only mild or moderate in severity. GSK said this points to “a disconnect” between the level of symptoms and their own subjective assessment of the disease.

- The number of U.S. women affected by COPD (7.1 percent), was notably higher than males (6.2 percent). As a result, physicians may want to consider additional evaluation when women present with respiratory symptoms, recurrent respiratory infections, or fatigue, to assess COPD and improve outcomes.

- The percentage of U.S. participants who were identified as having never smoked was 25 percent – giving researchers reason to explore additional risk factors, such as environmental or occupational exposures, and asthma, as well as consider whether symptomatic non-smoking patients need early screening and access to recommended disease management.

"Given GSK's 40-year heritage in the respiratory disease area, we were keen to follow up on our decade-old landmark study—the first COPD cross-national, population-based survey of its kind—with an update that helps provide insights as to how the disease and its management have evolved over time," said Kourtney Davis, Ph.D., MSPH, lead global epidemiologist at GSK, who worked on the survey. "From these findings we see that the face of COPD is changing. Traditionally, COPD was considered to be a disease of elderly male smokers, but now, more women than men report having COPD, and about a quarter of patients have never smoked."



Kopf, David. (2014 November 13). COPD Prevalence Has Increased In Past Decade. Retrieved from http://hme-business.com/articles/2014/11/13/copd.aspx.

This innovative product acts as a soft, comfortable seal between your skin and your CPAP mask.

Do you suffer from:

Noisy and annoying air leaks?
Skin irritation?
Ugly pressure marks?
Lack of a tight fit because of facial moisture or oils?

If you experience any or all of the above, give RemZzzs a try! They consist of a very soft, thin cloth with an opening for your nose. They help protect the areas of your face that come in contact with your full face mask or even your nasal mask, which help alleviate any irritation you may receive from wearing your mask at night.

RemZzzs are a product manufactured by a company called Naturs Design, Inc. and are available for most PAP masks. They can help you better adhere to compliance requirements set by your insurance company by eliminating leaks and the irritating noises caused by escaping air. And they may also extend the life of your mask by absorbing facial moisture and oils, thus increasing the time it takes for the mask to break down.

Recent research shows that 20 percent of patients hospitalized with COPD exacerbations are readmitted within 30 days.

The finding was made in new study published in the December International Journal of COPD that largely focuses on the use of nebulized COPD medications and 30-day readmission rates. However, much of the study will be of interest to oxygen providers and other respiratory health professionals and caregivers.

The new study can be downloaded at http://www.dovepress.com/hospital-readmissions-following-initiation-of-nebulized-arformoterol-t-peer-reviewed-article-COPD.

Other key findings from the report:

- In 2008, the US spent $53.7 billion on direct health care costs for treating asthma and COPD.
- Average annual health care costs for COPD patients varied dramatically from $2,003 to $43,471 depending on the types of medical services utilized, with hospitalized patients requiring treat­ment in the intensive care unit incurring the greatest expense.
- Across all COPD patients, hospital admissions account for the majority of direct health care costs.
-The average annual costs of treating COPD in the United States in 2006 revealed that the average patient incurred $3,943 in direct expenses, but those who were hospitalized incurred $15,093, and those requiring treatment in the intensive care unit during hospitalization incurred $43,471.5

Readmissions for COPD patients are a key concern for hospitals. Starting in October, hospitals will be penalized for excess COPD readmissions under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. So keeping COPD patients out of hospitals will be critical, and hospitals are particularly interested in 30-day readmission rates.



Kopf, David. (2014 February 20). Study: 20% of Hospitalized COPD Patients Readmitted within 30 Days. Retrieved from http://hme-business.com/articles/2014/02/20/copd-study.aspx.