The USA Today became the latest paper to document ever-expanding Medicare expenditures. In the article, which appeared earlier this month, reporter Julie Appleby describes the “anti-snoring devices” as “one of Medicare’s fastest-growing medical equipment expenses, up 96% nationwide since 2004.”

Appleby documents usage in the town of Lady Lake, Fla—a so-called retirement haven—which experienced more than a 100% increase in CPAP use since 2004. The article also raises an eyebrow, questioning whether the CPAP machines flying off the shelf are actually needed. According to USA Today, sleep centers are popping up all over the city of just 75,000 people. Nationwide, the article states that Medicare spending on CPAP use increased from $291 million in 2004 to $571 million in 2007.
 
Industry analysts have attributed the growth to greater awareness of sleep disorders and the increasing obesity epidemic. “As we get older and as we get fatter, we have more sleep apnea,” Juan A. Albino, a pulmonologist and sleep specialist in Lady Lake, told USA Today.
 
Although the sleep industry is growing faster as awareness increases and more patients are prescribed CPAP machines after an OSA diagnosis, the USA Today article asks: “Are people getting treatment they don’t need?” Fred Holt of the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association asks USA Today. “Not everyone with a diagnosis of sleep apnea needs CPAP. Weight loss, avoiding alcohol and sedatives at bedtime, or changing sleep position could eliminate the problem for some.”
 
Whether a CPAP machine is necessary for every patient who is receiving one, the prescriptions are certainly generating revenue. USA Today cites Marketdata research, noting that nearly $2 billion is spent on CPAP devices annually worldwide, with most of that revenue coming from the United States.