Volara and Medicare

@mdf I was also told Medicare does not cover it, but an acquaintance of mine had it covered through supplemental insurance. I'm not sure how many people this would work for - my supplement covers very little denied by Medicare unless the type of device or treatment is addressed in the policy.
Sue

How effective has Volara been for people vs. the various air clearance techniques? If it saves/effort and is more effective maybe it's worth purchasing.

I have had one since late December. I does a much better job than the Flutter valve. Hillrom worked with me and I made sure that if insurance did not cover it, I could return it at no charge. I had Anthem at the time and surprisingly they covered it 100%, otherwise I would have returned it since it costs $15,000.

Thanks, @rstel7272 for the info. Flutter valve (acapella) did not help me much. The best to date has been AD app but I wonder if I'm clearing enough. How much time do you spend with Volara? From the photos/info on the site, looks like a lot of tubing, and therefore lots of cleanup/sterilization.

Thanks Sue. I don't know if this is considered a "high frequency chest oscillation device" or not, since I am not very familiar with the device but I would think for it to work on secretions it would have to be, but according to the cms.gov website if it is, if you meet one of three criterion (i.e. CF, Bronchietasis (with qualifiers), or a host of neuromuscular disease diagnoses, AND have a well documented failure of standard treatments to adequately mobilize retained secretions, it should be covered by Medicare. I may be misreading something as I am not very familiar with this sort of thing and would love it someone would set me straight on where my thinking is incorrect. I will have to say, I was surprised that it might not be covered. I am wondering now if the Smart Vest and other similar devices are covered by Medicare. Anyone know from experience?

I looked up the Volara but it is still not clear to me what it is exactly or how you use it. Rick would you mind explaining it some? It is not a vest? Is it something that provides a flutter effect at the same time as you nebulize? It says it is for critical care but assume it is also used for routine airway clearance.

Medicare paid for my Philips Incourage vest.

I ad a vial of albuterol and my unit was preset for 10 minutes on a low setting. It has a timer and I just breath somewhat normally. It forces air into the lungs so it takes a bit of effort to exhale but I quickly got the hang of it. 10 minutes and I am done. I sometimes do twice a day, depending in my work/play schedule.

I have used the Volara since July 2022. My Medicare Advantage plan covered most of it.
It has alternating cycles of pressure which expands the airways and pulses which are kind of like an internal vest, all the while nebulizing (saline in my case). The nebulizer is weaker than my Ombra. So I use the Aerobika attached to the Ombra for morning airway clearance and the Volara in the afternoon. I was able to trial the Volara at NJH and my local pulmonologist before deciding to get it.

@irenea8 This video helped clear up a number of questions about Volara.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8o9GE05PRVI

Essentially, it appears to be a neb and automated PEP device in one. One of my questions was when do you clear/huff. That time is programmed in throughout the treatment. There's a 30 minute max time, so the user cannot go on and on. The video showed a 17 minute treatment time, so maybe that's average?

How well Volara clears in comparison with other methods was not answered. Maybe someone that has it will chime in.