Troubleshooter helps Cumberland County man get medical device

When you are sick, a medical device that you desperately need could make all the difference when it comes to quality of life.

For Dennis Delong, a portable oxygen machine was something that he, along with his family, said would help him not only survive day to day but also would make life so much easier.

Dennis depends on oxygen 24 hours a day.

Before contacting us, dozens of oxygen tanks filled his home, as that is how he got his oxygen.

Each tank only lasts so long, so he would need to bring several with him to doctor appointments and outings so he would not run out of oxygen; that was always a fear.

His son Dennis said, "A tank would last 30 minutes, so you'd have to stop what you're doing and hook everything up and switch the tanks."

Dennis' doctor wrote him a prescription for a portable oxygen machine so he could leave the house without the fear of running out of oxygen.

The portable machine is handheld, battery operated, and can be charged so it would be much easier than bringing oxygen tanks everywhere.

Dennis' son said he sent in all of the paperwork to Lincare, the company that supplies his dad's oxygen tanks.

The wait was longer than expected and when he called Lincare to find out why, he said that Lincare told him they were waiting for approval from Medicare.

When Dennis reached out to Medicare, he said that they claimed they were not the hold up.

"In the meantime, my dad is suffering and not being able to get what he needs to get around because of large organizations," Dennis said.

The family reached out to me, I got in touch with Lincare and Medicare, and the portable oxygen machine was delivered to the DeLong home within a day.

"I'm thrilled to death, you have no idea," Dennis said. The Delong's said the portable oxygen machine has been a real blessing, and they can now take Dennis out of the home without worrying that he will run out of oxygen.

Due to privacy laws, neither Lincare nor Medicare could discuss the details of what happened, but both companies thanked us for bringing this to their attention.