- Today I won't be reviewing a CPAP mask.
Four!
(golf club thwacks)
(car engine revving)
And I sure as hell won't be breaking news
on the latest CPAP machine.
(machine shattering)
Today, I'm reviewing a company.
(glass shattering)
I won't be naming this company directly,
simply referring to them as Company X,
and I wanna make one thing really clear.
This isn't a personal attack
on the everyday people working in the company.
You should be really proud of the work that you all do.
All the events discussed in today's video
are recent events,
and all have occurred in the last decade.
All the information provided is freely available
for anyone who cares enough to look.
All right, let's begin.
Well, firstly, Company X makes incredible products
loved by millions of people all around the world,
including myself.
And they literally change people's lives.
There's no denying that.
But beneath the glossy exterior, there's something rotten.
Now, from the very first moment
you sit down with your sleep doctor
and talk about your sleeping problems,
chances are, the manipulation has already begun.
Let me explain.
In the year 2020, Company X agreed to pay $37.5 million
to settle five whistleblower lawsuits
claiming Company X paid kickbacks to doctors, sleep labs
and medical equipment suppliers,
that's your CPAP and your DME clinics,
to obtain customer referrals
according to the US Department of Justice.
Not one, not two, but five whistleblower lawsuits.
And personally, I'm more concerned
about the ones who didn't blow the whistle.
Hmm.
Now, I know Company X didn't just walk in there
and open up a great big suitcase full of cash,
but it's exactly the same thing.
"Oh, hello there, doctor,
"how would you like a whole bunch of free CPAP gear,
"masks, machines, diagnostic equipment,
"free services for your patients?
"Oh, and next time Mrs. Smith comes in for her check-up,
"well, you just send her over to us
"and we'll take care of her for you."
And here's the thing.
Company X is not alone.
In 2016, Company Y settled a kickback case for $35 million.
Benjamin Mizer, head of the Justice Department said,
"Americans, and every one of you
"deserve to know that when you are prescribed a device,
"a CPAP machine,
"to treat a serious health problem, sleep apnea,
"the supplier's judgment has not been compromised
"by illegal payments from equipment manufacturers."
Fu$k.
All right, let's stop for a quick moment.
There's something I really wanna bring your attention to.
So in 2016, Company Y settles for $35 million
with the Justice Department.
Company X is obviously aware at that time in 2016
that the Department of Justice is all over these kickbacks,
all right?
Yet in 2020, four years later,
they settle five kickback lawsuits for $37.5 million.
Why do you think that is?
Why do you think they would continue to do it
knowing that the Department of Justice is all over it?
It's because they don't care, you see?
$37.5 million for a billion-dollar company
is just a drop in the ocean.
And they know whatever happens,
Department of Justice, legal cases, whatever,
they can just throw a few million dollars at it
and all their problems just fade away.
So basically what you got is this.
You got your doctors, your sleep labs, your CPAP clinics,
and your manufacturers,
and they're all lying on a great big bed full of money
having one giant sleep apnea orgy.
And there's an image
you're never gonna get out of your head.
Here's a Facebook post I read today,
and it's a great example of what we just discussed.
It's from a lady named Karina, and she writes,
"Hi, I've used a Company Y machine for five years.
"My sleep doctor said I needed to upgrade
"and prescribed the Company X machine.
"I've been using it for a week now
"and I've had a headache every single day.
"It feels like the pressure is too high
"but the settings are exactly the same.
"Any ideas?"
Now, I bet my right arm
there was nothing wrong with Karina's machine.
Seemed like she was just fine.
Loving life, loving her therapy.
So she's gone in for some redundant checkup
with Company Y's machine
and she's manipulated by her sleep doctor
into upgrading to Company X machine
and she's hating it.
And here's the kicker.
Company X machine which she was upgrading to
is actually seven years old.
It's older than the current machine that she has.
(laughs)
You see, the doctors are the gatekeepers.
They hold all the keys.
Which is why the CPAP manufacturers
spend so much time and money
bribing them with all the kickbacks.
It's corrupt, it's unethical,
it's a conflict of interest,
and it's just plain (beep) wrong.
And now it's over to you, my amazing sleep apnea family,
those of you that have supported the channel for years.
I'm not calling on you to write angry emails
or boycott products, no.
Your responsibility and your duty
is to look out for one another,
your fellow sleep apnea mates.
You're all in this together.
You guys are just the best people on the world.
And you deserve so much better.
So please, please, please,
learn to think for yourselves.
Make up your own mind, and don't be manipulated.
Goodbye.