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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.
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This story was produced by Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent program of the Kaiser Family Foundation.
KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF.Some elements may be removed from this article due to republishing restrictions. If you have questions about available photos or other content, please contact khnweb@kff.org.