I strongly advise against using Health System Services (HSS) in East Syracuse, whose supplier is in Niagara, unless you want to experience constant frustration. (After East Syracuse handles the initial setup, the Niagara office takes over for supplies and insurance coverage.) Over the past 15 years, I've worked with several medical supply companies, but none have been as inept, uninformed, and aggravating as HSS. My experience as a client was brief--only four months--but that was more than enough to raise my blood pressure.
Each time I called, they seemed unfamiliar with my account and would leave me waiting for long periods while they "looked me up." Even when they called me, if I asked a question, they would either draw a blank or respond with phrases like, "nothing in your account notes" or "someone will need to look into that and get back to you," which, of course, never happened. They repeatedly billed the wrong insurance company, despite me providing updated information multiple times.
I was supposed to receive CPAP supplies every three months. Although HSS called to confirm my order and address, two weeks passed without receiving any supplies. When I called to inquire, they were unable to provide an answer and kept transferring me to different representatives. Eventually, one rep admitted that although my order had been processed, "someone forgot to follow through and ship it." Seriously. A medical supply company that handles life-sustaining equipment failed to ship my order? It was beyond frustrating.
Dealing with their Niagara office became so time-consuming that I eventually reached out to my sleep center to tell them about the terrible service I had received. They immediately set me up with another CPAP supplier, and I returned my CPAP unit to HSS in East Syracuse, receiving a receipt for the return. Two weeks after I canceled my account, I received a call from HSS in Niagara offering to send me supplies. When I informed them that I was no longer a client and had returned the equipment, they claimed to have no record of it and insisted I was still on their system. This led to yet another call to East Syracuse, who assured me they had faxed the return form to Niagara, but, unsurprisingly, Niagara never processed it.
Four weeks later, I received a bill from HSS in Niagara stating that insurance hadn't paid anything, likely because they had billed the wrong insurance company again.
While the staff (which consisted of just one person) at the East Syracuse office was more pleasant and helpful, they couldn't seem to get the Niagara office on the same page with my account. The East Syracuse office also has an unprofessional atmosphere, with no reception area and just one person handling everything. During the initial setup, the office was under major construction, with building materials scattered around, creating a hazard. As someone who is disabled, this was particularly concerning, and I nearly tripped over a sawhorse and onto a circular saw. The representative was late and didn't have any sample masks for me to try on, which led to the wrong size mask being provided and caused further issues. In contrast, my new CPAP supplier has a full staff, a reception area, and offers a much more professional and organized experience. They know who I am when I interact with them and address my questions promptly.
HSS is by far the worst medical supply company I have ever encountered. Their lack of familiarity with patient accounts is not only frustrating but dangerous. How they manage to stay in business and retain clients is beyond me. After the chaos they caused with my account, I switched to a more reliable CPAP supplier. Save yourself the headache--avoid HSS. read more
