‘An Arm And A Leg’: Journalist Learns The Hard Way That CPAP Compliance Pays

By Dan Weissmann July 17, 2019

Can’t see the audio player? Click here to listen.

About This Podcast

Health care — and how much it costs — is scary. But you’re not alone with this stuff, and knowledge is power. “An Arm and a Leg” is a podcast about these issues, and its second season is co-produced by KHN.

Visit armandalegshow.com

When Eric Umansky discovered that the machine that helps him breathe at night was “transmitting” his sleep habits to his insurance company, he was not happy. He was also less than pleased to learn that his insurer wanted to use that information to avoid paying for the treatment his doctor prescribed.

Irked, Umansky — who’s a journalist — recruited an investigative reporter in his newsroom to get to the bottom of the story. Later, both men spoke with podcast host Dan Weissmann.

Episode 6 of “An Arm and a Leg” uncovers some surprising rules and regulations designed to get consumers to shoulder a bigger share of the cost of medical equipment.

Season 2 is a co-production of Kaiser Health News and Public Road Productions.

To keep in touch with “An Arm and a Leg,” subscribe to the newsletter. You can also follow the show on Facebook and Twitter. And if you’ve got stories to tell about the health care system, the producers would love to hear from you.

To hear all Kaiser Health News podcasts, click here.

And subscribe to “An Arm and a Leg” on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Google Play or Spotify.

Copy And Paste To Republish This Story

‘An Arm And A Leg’: Journalist Learns The Hard Way That CPAP Compliance Pays

By Dan Weissmann July 17, 2019

Article HTML

<h1>‘An Arm And A Leg’: Journalist Learns The Hard Way That CPAP Compliance Pays</h1>
	<span class="byline">Dan Weissmann</span>

// Autosize iframe
				var funcSizeResponse = function( e ) {

var origin = document.createElement( 'a' );
					origin.href = e.origin;

// Verify message origin
					if ( 'embeds.kff.org' !== origin.host )
						return;

// Verify message is in a format we expect
					if ( 'object' !== typeof e.data || undefined === e.data.msg_type )
						return;

switch ( e.data.msg_type ) {
						case 'poll_size:response':
							var iframe = document.getElementById( e.data._request.frame_id );

if ( iframe && '' === iframe.width )
								iframe.width = '100%';
							if ( iframe && '' === iframe.height )
								iframe.height = parseInt( e.data.height );

return;
						default:
							return;
					}
				}

if ( 'function' === typeof window.addEventListener ) {
					window.addEventListener( 'message', funcSizeResponse, false );
				} else if ( 'function' === typeof window.attachEvent ) {
					window.attachEvent( 'onmessage', funcSizeResponse );
				}
			}
			if (document.readyState === 'complete') { func.apply(); /* compat for infinite scroll */ }
			else if ( document.addEventListener ) { document.addEventListener( 'DOMContentLoaded', func, false ); }
			else if ( document.attachEvent ) { document.attachEvent( 'onreadystatechange', func ); }
		} )();
		</script>

<p><em>Can’t see the audio player? <a href="https://armandalegshow.com/whoa-this-medical-device-is-spying-on-me-in-my-sleep-so-my-insurer-can-deny-me-coverage/">Click here to listen.</a></em></p>

<aside class="related related-slab pull-right">
											<div class="slab default-slab ">
													<h3>
					<a href="https://armandalegshow.com/">
		About This Podcast			</a>
			</h3>
<div class="slab-container">	<div class="slab-content">
		
	<iframe 
 title="Embedded Media"
		id="wpcom-iframe-3aca858c13d318e0b12ac18241cbb5fa"
		width="100%"
		height="185"
		src="https://embeds.kff.org/protected-iframe/3aca858c13d318e0b12ac18241cbb5fa"
		scrolling=""
		frameborder="0"
		class="wpcom-protected-iframe"
		>
	</iframe>
	<script type="text/javascript">
		( function() {
			var func = function() {
				var iframe = document.getElementById('wpcom-iframe-3aca858c13d318e0b12ac18241cbb5fa')
				if ( iframe ) {
					iframe.onload = function() {
						iframe.contentWindow.postMessage( {
							'msg_type': 'poll_size',
							'frame_id': 'wpcom-iframe-3aca858c13d318e0b12ac18241cbb5fa'
						}, "https:\/\/embeds.kff.org" );
					}
				}

// Autosize iframe
				var funcSizeResponse = function( e ) {

var origin = document.createElement( 'a' );
					origin.href = e.origin;

// Verify message origin
					if ( 'embeds.kff.org' !== origin.host )
						return;

// Verify message is in a format we expect
					if ( 'object' !== typeof e.data || undefined === e.data.msg_type )
						return;

switch ( e.data.msg_type ) {
						case 'poll_size:response':
							var iframe = document.getElementById( e.data._request.frame_id );

if ( iframe && '' === iframe.width )
								iframe.width = '100%';
							if ( iframe && '' === iframe.height )
								iframe.height = parseInt( e.data.height );

return;
						default:
							return;
					}
				}

<p><em>Can’t see the audio player? <a href="https://armandalegshow.com/whoa-this-medical-device-is-spying-on-me-in-my-sleep-so-my-insurer-can-deny-me-coverage/">Click here to listen.</a></em></p>

<p>When <a href="https://www.propublica.org/people/eric-umansky">Eric Umansky</a> discovered that the machine that helps him breathe at night was “transmitting” his sleep habits to his insurance company, he was not happy. He was also less than pleased to learn that his insurer wanted to use that information to avoid paying for the treatment his doctor prescribed.</p>
<p>Irked, Umansky — who’s a journalist — recruited an investigative reporter in his newsroom to get to the bottom of the <a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/you-snooze-you-lose-insurers-make-the-old-adage-literally-true">story</a>. Later, both men spoke with podcast host Dan Weissmann.</p>
<p>Episode 6 of “An Arm and a Leg” uncovers some surprising rules and regulations designed to get consumers to shoulder a bigger share of the cost of medical equipment.</p>

<p>Season 2 is a co-production of Kaiser Health News and Public Road Productions.</p>
<p>To keep in touch with “An Arm and a Leg,” <a href="https://armandalegshow.com/newsletter/">subscribe to the newsletter</a>. You can also follow the show on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/armandalegshow/">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/armandalegshow">Twitter</a>. And if you’ve got stories to tell about the health care system, the producers <a href="https://armandalegshow.com/contact-us/">would love to hear from you</a>.</p>
<p><em>To hear all Kaiser Health News podcasts, <a href="https://kffhealthnews.org/news/tag/podcast/">click here</a>.</em></p>
<p><em>And subscribe to “An Arm and a Leg” on <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/an-arm-and-a-leg/id1438778444">iTunes</a>, <a href="https://play.pocketcasts.com/web/discover/podcast/6e9e33e0-b911-0136-7b93-27f978dac4db">Pocket Casts</a>, <a href="https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hcm1hbmRhbGVnc2hvdy5jb20vZmVlZC9wb2RjYXN0Lw%3D%3D">Google Play</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3wBgLSbYPKT3gnd9KGjz5t?si=jEMzB2soS_ayOsYbK0cmnQ">Spotify</a>.</em></p>
	</div>
	<div class="link-button">
		<a href="https://armandalegshow.com/" class="btn btn-default btn-block">
			Visit armandalegshow.com		</a>
	</div>
	</div>						</div>
									</aside>
				
<p>When <a href="https://www.propublica.org/people/eric-umansky">Eric Umansky</a> discovered that the machine that helps him breathe at night was “transmitting” his sleep habits to his insurance company, he was not happy. He was also less than pleased to learn that his insurer wanted to use that information to avoid paying for the treatment his doctor prescribed.</p>
<p>Irked, Umansky — who’s a journalist — recruited an investigative reporter in his newsroom to get to the bottom of the <a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/you-snooze-you-lose-insurers-make-the-old-adage-literally-true">story</a>. Later, both men spoke with podcast host Dan Weissmann.</p>
<p>Episode 6 of “An Arm and a Leg” uncovers some surprising rules and regulations designed to get consumers to shoulder a bigger share of the cost of medical equipment.</p>

We encourage organizations to republish our content, free of charge. Here’s what we ask:

You must credit us as the original publisher, with a hyperlink to our kffhealthnews.org site. If possible, please include the original author(s) and KFF Health News” in the byline. Please preserve the hyperlinks in the story.

Have questions? Let us know at KHNHelp@kff.org

More From KFF Health News

A photo of a car driving on a road, focused in on the car's tire.

Tire Toxicity Faces Fresh Scrutiny After Salmon Die-Offs

A photo of Lina Khan during a House of Representatives committee hearing.

FTC Chief Says Tech Advancements Risk Health Care Price Fixing

A woman walks down a corridor past a woman in a wheelchair

Biden Administration Sets Higher Staffing Mandates. Most Nursing Homes Don’t Meet Them.

Listen to the Latest ‘KFF Health News Minute’

Related Topics

More From KFF Health News