A fair question, particularly because at this website I tell you all about the products used with supplemental oxygen except price.

• I describe concentrators for home and portable use. I tell you about concentrators that can fill cylinders of a portable system. I show what portable oxygen systems look like that use compressed oxygen cylinders and conservers. I describe liquid oxygen portable with built-in conservers and the reservoirs that fill the portable. Nowhere do I quote prices of these home or portable systems.

• I describe what manufacturers say about their products. I tell you what users say about them. I list product specifications. I put the specifications in a table so you can compare apples with apples. I highlight and discuss the differences and variations among similar products so you can decide your preferences for yourself. Nowhere do I list comparative prices.

• I discuss travel. I describe motoring across the United States, picking up oxygen and using it as you go from one locality to another. Nowhere do I tell you what to pay for oxygen while traveling.

And, there is good reason why I do not quote prices and that is, there should be no additional charge.

Oxygen Products
If you are insured, you do not have to pay for any oxygen products. You do not have to pay for any oxygen while away from your home base. All costs are covered under the service agreement between your insurer and your oxygen provider. The essence of the service agreement is that the oxygen provider will keep the oxygen flowing for a flat fee paid by the insurer and the patient. Regardless of what products you now have or change to, your copay will remain the same.

If you continue to work, your provider must set up equipment at your home and at your place of employment. If you ask for a second concentrator to place in your SUV or RV during the season or for a back up conserver, or for extra liquid oxygen tanks, your provider will probably accommodate you. However, it you ask your provider for a second concentrator to put in your vacation home which is located in a remote area in another state, the provider may say no.

The purpose of this website is to provide you with the information you need about oxygen products so you can compare what is available with what has been issued to you. You may want to take this information to your oxygen provider and negotiate for better products. You should do this when you think your products are not supporting you and your lifestyle.

Reasons that you may want to exchange a concentrator for a liquid oxygen system for home use. Your apartment or mobile home is too small to handle the heat, vibration, and noise a concentrator generates. On your fixed income you cannot afford $30 a month more in electricity to run the concentrator and the additional air conditioning cost to offset the heat it generates during the summer. You live in an area that has frequent and long power outages.

You should find your provider willing to listen to reasonable requests from customers. Your provider’s customer base is its most important asset. Each new customer is going to be a customer for life. These customers will generate significant annual revenue for the provider in return for regular services with known costs. For example, your provider can expect $3,000 annually from each Medicare customer in return for equipment and about 18 home visits a year. It is important to that provider to keep each of its customers well supported.

Reasons that you may want to exchange a compressed oxygen for a liquid oxygen system for portable use. You do not have the strength to carry at least five hours of oxygen. You have difficulty controlling and fear injury when you are required to pull an E cylinder on a cart. You do not have the hand strength to open and close the valve of a cylinder. Your flow or pulse rate is so high that you have to change even the largest cylinders you can carry, every two hours.

 
Reimbursement for all Medicare patients is the same, regardless of the oxygen system (concentrator, compressed oxygen, or liquid oxygen) and the flow rate of the patient. (This may also true of Medicaid, and most other insurers.) Knowing this, physicians are more likely not to specify the particular oxygen source when writing the prescription. Even when they do, providers may ignore the recommendation and choose the least expensive method. However, the means chosen by the provider may not be the one most appropriate from a clinical point-of-view. Use what you learn from my website to help your physician understand clinical issues that will help you get the friendliest oxygen system.

Reasons that you might be dissatisfied with your present conserver. Your breathing is so shallow that you miss pulses. Some conservers are better than others at recognizing inhalations. You have a very slow (or very fast) breathing rate. Resetting the pulse rate is one solution. Another is to use a conserver that delivers the same amount of oxygen each minute, regardless of the patient’s breathing rate. You are a mouth breather. Continuous flow is probably the best.

Power Wheelchair
If you are on Medicare and qualify for a wheelchair, you can get a power wheelchair at no cost. Most wheelchair distributors will accept Medicare’s 80 percent as payment in full with no copay. Seek out distributors carefully, selecting one who will service it in your home. Google “power wheelchair.”

Oximeter
An oximeter is the most important product oxygen users can have. If your insurer is other than Medicare, you may find you have a small copay. (See Aetna’s policy) Until Medicare wakes up to the importance of this device in patient’s hands, patients are going to have to pay the cost. Prices are down from $400 to less than $300, so shop carefully. Google “finger oximeter,” “onyx” or “nonin.”

Liter Meter
To check leaks in tubing, own a liter meter. The cost is between $10 and $25, depending on how high the meter goes. To find one, Google “liter meter.”

So there. That’s why I have not quoted prices. With some good research through my website and both a physician and a provider willing to please, you should be using the products that are the best for you.

Need more help? Drop me a line.