HealthTap, a virtual primary care company, launched a new program on Monday to support sleep and respiratory durable medical equipment (DME) suppliers.
Sunnyvale, California-based HealthTap provides primary care across all 50 states in partnership with payers, pharmacies, providers, cost-sharing organizations and more.
The new program helps DME suppliers connect patients with sleep disorders to physicians for clinical evaluations, documentation or orders. Patients may need these services before insurers or suppliers can proceed with therapy or provide supplies. The program supports positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy from initial evaluation and treatment orders through compliance, resupply and device replacement.
After the physician visit, chart notes and orders are sent to the supplier. HealthTap also sends updates to suppliers when patients book, complete, cancel, miss or reschedule appointments.
“Physicians review relevant records and device data, evaluate the patient, and return completed notes and clinically appropriate orders through integrated workflows,” said Sean Mehra, HealthTap CEO. “Suppliers get real-time visit and documentation updates instead of chasing paperwork.”
Mehra added that DME suppliers often work hard to keep patients on therapy, but accessing physicians can be difficult.
“Delays in appointments, prescriptions, or required documentation can hold up orders, disrupt patient care, and delay reimbursement,” he said. “We launched this program to help DME suppliers overcome these challenges by giving them fast, reliable access to physicians, integrated clinical workflows, and timely documentation — so they can reduce administrative burden, keep patients on therapy, and keep their operations moving.”
Currently, about 30 million adults in the U.S. have obstructive sleep apnea. And for those using positive airway pressure therapy, physician involvement is very important. Under Medicare, continued coverage for certain PAP devices requires a treating practitioner to reevaluate the patient between days 31 and 91 after therapy begins and document its benefits and the patient’s adherence.
Ultimately, HealthTap aims to help patients easily get on and stay on therapy, Mehra said.
“Someone needing a follow-up evaluation or an updated prescription should have an easy way to see a physician and understand the next steps,” he said. “For DME suppliers, the goal is to remove uncertainty from helping that patient. Their teams spend significant time calling physician offices, checking if a visit occurred, and waiting for documentation before they can move forward. Through integrated workflows, completed visit notes and medically appropriate signed orders reach suppliers immediately after the visit. This gives their teams a clearer path forward and helps patients avoid further waiting.”
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