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Traveling/Flying with CPAP Machine
#51
RE: Traveling/Flying with CPAP Machine
(12-29-2013, 12:22 PM)Sharon D Wrote: I have been reading this thread with interest. I am flying out early tomorrow morning to California. I have never had problems flying in Canada with my CPAP, but I did have problems when leaving Orlando to come back to Canada several years ago. The TSA agent pulled the machine apart, poked holes in the hose, I must look like a terrorist as I was flying with a dance troupe as a parent. I did tell her it was a CPAP and she snarled at me that she knew what it was. I am hoping she was having a bad day. Replacing my hose cost $50

I would have been on someone's &*^$ to pay for that damage!
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#52
RE: Traveling/Flying with CPAP Machine
Unfortunately she took the machine away and I wasn't allowed to watch. I was unaware of what she had done until I went to use the CPAP that night. Shortly after that I stopped using the machine altogether.
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#53
RE: Traveling/Flying with CPAP Machine
(12-29-2013, 12:53 PM)Sharon D Wrote: Unfortunately she took the machine away and I wasn't allowed to watch. I was unaware of what she had done until I went to use the CPAP that night. Shortly after that I stopped using the machine altogether.

hopefully your experience tomorrow will be better. I just wouldn't let your machine out of your sight on this flight, both going and coming back home. hopefully, TSA has improved since you flew last. enjoy your trip.
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#54
RE: Traveling/Flying with CPAP Machine
On the way out, I had no problems at all with airport security. I only had to remove the motor from the bag. It went through xray and I retrieved it on the other end. No swabbing done. We were very particular about where we placed it in overhead bin and watched it like a hawk with other bags being put next to it. It was pretty painless ... until we got to the hotel!

We were all so tired and it was about 5 am to us with the time change by the time we checked in. Even though we had had reservations for many months and reserved by credit card ... we were given the last room available and it was smoking even though we always reserve non smoking. No offense to smokers intended. But we never have been smokers and the smell was tough on us. Me in particular with CPAP. I was beyond tired and teary by the time we walked in the room and just wanted to sleep. Hooked the CPAP up and put the wireless device for monitoring my progress by DME on the back and it kept flashing no connection. This disturbed me because I am supposed to be 2 nights away from what I had calculated as completing my 30 day compliance for insurance. Eventually it was flashing something about G5 AT&T ... not sure if that meant it was trying to operate via data like on a cell phone since we didn't have wifi. I was concerned nonetheless. Finally get into bed and I absolutely could not go to sleep with CPAP. The cigarette smell blasting up my nose drove me nuts. I was by then overly tired, concerned about connection of the wireless, not enjoying the smell coming through the hose and insomnia from it all.

My husband was at the desk the next morning pushing for a non smoking room and a Strip facing room. They insisted they didn't have one available facing Strip and said they had a long line of reservations for those rooms. My husband told them we had reserved one many months ago too. Some strong convincing and we were moved to one the next day. I had a much better night of sleep last night. With rehooking my CPAP up in the new room I had the same no connection flashing again and I really couldn't say if it is working. I placed a call to the DME yesterday to inform them and had to leave a message on VM. They never called me back. Sometime in the night I noticed the flashing no connection stopped. I will be upset with DME if they give me a hard time about compliance. Especially since I called them before going away and also yesterday.

Interestingly the time change on the machine was not a problem. It seems to recognize the three hour time difference and reset the on screen data at noon time for pacific time zone. I never changed the time on the machine from eastern time to pacific.
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#55
RE: Traveling/Flying with CPAP Machine
(12-29-2013, 05:53 PM)ImaSurvivor Wrote: On the way out, I had no problems at all with airport security. I only had to remove the motor from the bag. It went through xray and I retrieved it on the other end. No swabbing done. We were very particular about where we placed it in overhead bin and watched it like a hawk with other bags being put next to it. It was pretty painless ... until we got to the hotel!

We were all so tired and it was about 5 am to us with the time change by the time we checked in. Even though we had had reservations for many months and reserved by credit card ... we were given the last room available and it was smoking even though we always reserve non smoking. No offense to smokers intended. But we never have been smokers and the smell was tough on us. Me in particular with CPAP. I was beyond tired and teary by the time we walked in the room and just wanted to sleep. Hooked the CPAP up and put the wireless device for monitoring my progress by DME on the back and it kept flashing no connection. This disturbed me because I am supposed to be 2 nights away from what I had calculated as completing my 30 day compliance for insurance. Eventually it was flashing something about G5 AT&T ... not sure if that meant it was trying to operate via data like on a cell phone since we didn't have wifi. I was concerned nonetheless. Finally get into bed and I absolutely could not go to sleep with CPAP. The cigarette smell blasting up my nose drove me nuts. I was by then overly tired, concerned about connection of the wireless, not enjoying the smell coming through the hose and insomnia from it all.

My husband was at the desk the next morning pushing for a non smoking room and a Strip facing room. They insisted they didn't have one available facing Strip and said they had a long line of reservations for those rooms. My husband told them we had reserved one many months ago too. Some strong convincing and we were moved to one the next day. I had a much better night of sleep last night. With rehooking my CPAP up in the new room I had the same no connection flashing again and I really couldn't say if it is working. I placed a call to the DME yesterday to inform them and had to leave a message on VM. They never called me back. Sometime in the night I noticed the flashing no connection stopped. I will be upset with DME if they give me a hard time about compliance. Especially since I called them before going away and also yesterday.

Interestingly the time change on the machine was not a problem. It seems to recognize the three hour time difference and reset the on screen data at noon time for pacific time zone. I never changed the time on the machine from eastern time to pacific.

Hope you are having fun. My modem did the same thing and Apria tech told me that it was because it was looking for a tower. Your data will still be on your SD card and your compliance data can also be seen on your LCD so don't worry about that part. Apria also told me that because it was flashing as you describe that they couldn't retrieve the data so I drove 35 miles round trip and when I got there, they had retrieved all of the data with no problem (too bad they didn't call and tell me this so I wouldn't have made the trip).
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#56
RE: Traveling/Flying with CPAP Machine
Thanks me50 I knew my data would still be on the data card. Like you, I would have a bit of a drive to get to my DME with the card which I wouldn't relish particularly in winter driving conditions. I think I would call first and have them check. I am looking at my machine now and it seems like maybe it has settled in to a tower. There is a blue glow on the antennae that was flashing last night when I was seeing no connection alert. The blue glow is now solid on and I haven't seen the connection alert.

I think the thing that bugs me is the Friday before Christmas and before traveling, I had gotten a congratulations text telling me I had reached adherence and call for details. It was a bit of relief knowing I didn't have to worry about it while traveling. I thought I was a little shy of reaching 30 days but I had not counted several days in my first week when I was over the 4 hrs. There were just two days I was under in that first week and they called me and said they had to have a solid 30 days of compliance. I was only under by a total of 13 minutes over two nights. I didn't know if they wouldn't count the other good nights I was well over or not. I didn't understand that first week they didn't look at averages. And I was having an insomnia issue at the time until I got medication that straightened things out. Actually they hadn't told me anything at all about compliance regulations until a week into therapy when they called me. I figured it out I probably needed 4 hours by reading this forum. So when I got the text I thought must be they do count the good nights I did have that first week.

When I called for details twice I didn't get to talk with the person who called me the first week and told me they would be monitoring me for 90 days to be sure my therapy was working but only needed 30 good days compliance and they would report it as soon as they could and be done with that part. When I called about getting details as it instructed in the text, it was a big run around. I was referred to billing and insurance and was told by the girl there the text was sent by a company they contract out with and doesn't really mean anything except they know I am being a good girl. She said I should keep the wireless device full 90 days. I told her I was aware of that but that I had been told I only needed 30 days compliance out of the 90 days and asked if I was complete with compliance or not as the text said. She beat around the bush and not giving me a straight answer repeating I needed to keep going for 90 days. I told her what I had been told by the first person who contacted me a week into therapy. I had to back her in a corner about confirming I only needed 30 days compliance to be good with insurance. She was very reluctant but did confirm 30 days was correct but that they would not be reporting compliance until mid February when 90 days is up.

I told her this far in it isn't like I am just gonna quit when compliance is done but that I wanted an answer to understood the terms. She was kind of condescending and talked down to me. It was suggested to me that I call her in the first place because the receptionist didn't have answers. The receptionist had tried to inquire for me and called me back also stating the text I received didn't really mean anything other than they know I have been being good. I think she had gotten the same run around so she gave me billing and insurance department's number to call for myself and said they would have the answers for me. As soon as the girl there answered the phone and I told her I had been given her number because I had questions, she laughed in the phone and had an attitude and asked what kind of questions?


What has concerned me is that even though I have had every night compliant, if I had one day I missed with the overnight travel and time change if it would mean I had to start the whole 30 days over again. And would all my other days not be reported or considerd.
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#57
RE: Traveling/Flying with CPAP Machine
And yes we are having fun. The weather is much warmer than home and we actually get to see blue sky every day. Definitely a nice break from winter's bleakness. Smile
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#58
RE: Traveling/Flying with CPAP Machine
(12-30-2013, 12:41 AM)ImaSurvivor Wrote: And yes we are having fun. The weather is much warmer than home and we actually get to see blue sky every day. Definitely a nice break from winter's bleakness. Smile

They are probably treating you like this because they don't know what the regulation is and that is sad because that is their job. I was told that because I had a sleep study 1 month after I got my new machine that I had to start over because I was not compliant that one night even though I had the documentation of the sleep study and it had already been 30 days. Then they turned my modem off after 30 days saying that I didn't have to be monitored anymore.

For your peace of mind, here is the actual requirement that has to be met.

Criterion C
Adherence to therapy is defined as use of PAP ≥ 4 hours per night on
70 percent of nights during a consecutive 30-day period
anytime during the first three months of initial usage.
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#59
RE: Traveling/Flying with CPAP Machine
For your peace of mind, here is the actual requirement that has to be met.

Criterion C
Adherence to therapy is defined as use of PAP ≥ 4 hours per night on
70 percent of nights during a consecutive 30-day period
anytime during the first three months of initial usage.
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#60
RE: Traveling/Flying with CPAP Machine
Thanks me50. I should be at 100% for 30 consecutive days by now but if for some reason they missed some data when my machine was searching for a wireless tower, I should at the very least fall within the 70% range. I should be all set with it by now.
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