Driving Measurable Referral Growth in OSA: Strategies for HME Providers

Published in Respiratory & Sleep on September 28, 2026

By Boone Lockard, VP of HME, Respiratory, and Wellness, VGM & Associates

For home medical equipment (HME) providers involved in sleep and respiratory care, undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) represents more than a patient care gap. It is an opportunity to create more consistent referral growth, strengthen relationships with primary care providers (PCPs), and help more patients move from risk identification to diagnosis, treatment, and long-term support.

A Large Undiagnosed Patient Population: The OSA epidemic affects 1 billion individuals worldwide, but 80% remain undiagnosed and untreated.¹

The market context makes this opportunity difficult to ignore, but provider impact depends on execution. Growth happens when referral workflows are easier for PCP practices to use, patient handoffs are supported, documentation does not stall progress, and providers can help more patients move from concern to care with fewer drop-offs along the way.

A Costly Gap in Care: According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, in the U.S., the estimated economic cost of undiagnosed OSA is nearly $150B.

Primary care can be a powerful starting point for referral growth. PCPs are often the first to see warning signs such as fatigue, snoring, hypertension, cardiovascular risk, diabetes, obesity, medication concerns, or other comorbidities that may point to undiagnosed OSA. When providers make the next step clear, PCPs can identify risk sooner, refer with more confidence, and help patients begin the evaluation process faster.

Here's how HME providers can create value by turning referral interest into action:

Supporting PCP education
Simplifying documentation
Clarifying testing and therapy steps
Staying connected after the referral

Incorporating these steps can help reduce friction, improve patient progression, and build the kind of trust that makes PCP referral relationships more repeatable.

The outcome is a stronger PCP-to-provider process that helps practices know when to refer, helps patients understand why care matters, and helps providers support diagnosis, PAP therapy setup, adherence, and ongoing follow-through more consistently.

How Providers Can Turn PCP Relationships into Referral Growth

Here’s how HME providers can enhance their relationships with PCPs to boost referrals:

Help PCPs Recognize Symptoms: Provide education on common OSA symptoms, comorbidities, and patient-care triggers that might prompt a referral.
Build Confidence with Clear Guidelines: Offer simple, easy-to-follow referral criteria, so PCPs know exactly when and how to refer a patient for sleep evaluation.
Make Documentation Easy: Clarify what’s needed for referrals to prevent any delays in the process, such as documentation requirements, testing options, prescriptions, and next steps.
Improve Patient Follow-through: Share educational resources that explain why evaluation and treatment are critical.
Streamline Handoffs: Facilitate seamless transitions between the PCP, diagnostic partners, and yourself as the HME provider.
Keep PCPs in the Loop: Regular updates on patient testing, therapy setup, adherence support, and patient progression foster trust and transparency.
Track Your Progress: Measure referral activity, patient progression, and outcomes to refine your approach.

Providers can also improve results by being intentional about which PCP practices they engage. Practices that care for patients with hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular risk, obesity, fatigue, or other OSA-related indicators may be especially important referral partners. From there, providers can focus on consistent education, easy handoffs, and measurable follow-through that supports stronger relationships and more predictable referral growth.

A Critical Front Door to Sleep Care: PCPs are often positioned to recognize OSA risk factors and common comorbidities, but screening, referral, diagnostic testing, and therapy initiation do not always move in a straight line.

VGM is Here to Help

That is why VGM is asking HME leaders to weigh in. Your input on our recent industry survey will help identify where PCP referral efforts are producing results, where patients or processes stall, and what support would help providers make referral growth more practical, measurable, and repeatable. Input from owners, executives, sales and business development leaders, clinical services leaders, and operations leaders will help VGM prioritize tools, education, and support around the outcomes providers are trying to achieve.

Take 10 minutes to share your thoughts by October 2 on what would help your organization improve PCP referral confidence, reduce patient drop-off, strengthen handoffs, and turn more OSA risk recognition into diagnosis, treatment, and long-term support.

Sources

¹ Benjafield AV, et al. Estimation of the global prevalence and burden of obstructive sleep apnea: A literature-based analysis. The Lancet Respiratory Medicine. 2019;7(8):687-698.

² American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Economic burden of undiagnosed sleep apnea in U.S. is nearly $150B per year.

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