{"id":410,"date":"2026-05-16T13:33:33","date_gmt":"2026-05-16T13:33:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410"},"modified":"2026-05-16T13:33:33","modified_gmt":"2026-05-16T13:33:33","slug":"phoenix-mom-seeks-answers-after-delay-in-sons-critical-medical-equipment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410","title":{"rendered":"Phoenix mom seeks answers after delay in son\u2019s critical medical equipment"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n

PHOENIX (AZFamily)<\/b> \u2014 A Phoenix mother struggled to get critical medical equipment for her son after a company failed to make an emergency replacement for broken equipment.<\/p>\n

Read more Arizona\u2019s Family Investigates Podcast: ICE deporting immigrants from AZ airport in record numbers despite concerns<\/a><\/p>\n

Stetson is 7 years old and has had profound medical challenges since he was born. His vitals are constantly monitored.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy son has seizures daily and his oxygen drops sometimes when he has seizures, said Elizabeth Richards, Stetson\u2019s mother. \u201cIt\u2019s pretty scary.\u201d<\/p>\n

When his pulse oximeter stopped working, Richards called to get a replacement. She was expecting a quick delivery. But Preferred Homecare, the company that handles Stetson\u2019s durable medical equipment, told her they needed a prior authorization.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was like you don\u2019t need to wait for a prior authorization. It\u2019s not a new item,\u201d Richards said.<\/p>\n

The company held firm, citing a policy change. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey told me basically to admit my son to the hospital for seven to fourteen days until we get the approval,\u201d Richards told On Your Side. \u201cIt is a very helpless feeling. I had no idea what to do over the weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stetson\u2019s medical team jumped in to try to help. After several days, Richards said she heard back from Preferred Homecare.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey call me and say so we don\u2019t need a prior authorization so we\u2019re going to go ahead and schedule a delivery, and I about lost my mind because they\u2019ve been telling me I needed a prior authorization for the past week,\u201d Richards said.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone tells me it\u2019s out of their hands, there\u2019s nothing we can do. I\u2019m like, my child is on a ventilator and I\u2019m calling for life-saving equipment. I\u2019m just asking you to do your job,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

According to AHCCCS, there have been no recent state or federal policy changes that would cut coverage for medical equipment or emergency replacements.<\/p>\n

Read more Man accused of stealing over $10,000 worth of meat, candy from Sam\u2019s Club, authorities say<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cAHCCCS contracts with managed care health plans, which are responsible for authorizing covered services and ensuring members have access to medically necessary equipment through contracted DME providers,\u201d a spokesperson for AHCCCS wrote in a statement. \u201cHealth plans are also required to ensure continuity of care and to address urgent equipment needs appropriately.\u201d<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for Preferred Homecare said they cannot answer questions about Stetson\u2019s case because of patient privacy but said the health and safety of patients is the top priority.<\/p>\n

\u201cPreferred Homecare collaborates with physicians, insurance companies, and other covered entities to ensure they receive timely and accurate information,\u201d a spokesperson wrote in a statement to On Your Side. <\/p>\n

Stetson ultimately got the equipment he needed, but Richards fears medical equipment delays could happen again. \u201cI\u2019m terrified,\u201d she said. \u201cIf this continues to be an issue and these kids are continuing to get denied life-saving equipment, for medical conditions they didn\u2019t ask to have, they don\u2019t want to have, parents don\u2019t want them to have either, it\u2019s a little bit concerning.\u201d<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for AHCCCS said the agency is reviewing the situation.<\/p>\n

\u201cAHCCCS remains committed to ensuring members receive medically necessary, life-sustaining services in accordance with Medicaid requirements,\u201d the spokesperson said. \u201cDepending on their health plan and location, AHCCCS members generally have access to more than one contracted DME provider. Health plans can assist members in identifying alternative providers when needed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anyone who is facing a medical equipment delay should contact their health plan or AHCCCS member services. If the health plan is unable to resolve the issue, families can call AHCCCS\u2019 Clinical Resolution Unit at 602-364-4558 or 800-867-5808. <\/p>\n

See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? <\/i>Please click here to report it<\/i>.<\/i><\/p>\n

Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send <\/i>it to us here<\/i> with a brief description.<\/i><\/p>\n

Read more Judge delays deadline in $12.8M Arizona lottery ticket dispute<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Phoenix mother says delays in replacing her medically fragile son\u2019s vital equipment left her terrified and without answers until On Your Side stepped in.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":409,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-410","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nPhoenix mom seeks answers after delay in son\u2019s critical medical equipment - Tucson Moving Report<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Phoenix mom seeks answers after delay in son\u2019s critical medical equipment - Tucson Moving Report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A Phoenix mother says delays in replacing her medically fragile son\u2019s vital equipment left her terrified and without answers until On Your Side stepped in.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Tucson Moving Report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-16T13:33:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/71841c7d449e6ab1ace6bce2f5277255\"},\"headline\":\"Phoenix mom seeks answers after delay in son\u2019s critical medical equipment\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-16T13:33:33+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410\"},\"wordCount\":682,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/a5b5966b554584ea27a2efed6e67c93f.avif\",\"articleSection\":[\"Interesting\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410\",\"name\":\"Phoenix mom seeks answers after delay in son\u2019s critical medical equipment - Tucson Moving Report\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/a5b5966b554584ea27a2efed6e67c93f.avif\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-16T13:33:33+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/71841c7d449e6ab1ace6bce2f5277255\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/a5b5966b554584ea27a2efed6e67c93f.avif\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/a5b5966b554584ea27a2efed6e67c93f.avif\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":600},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=410#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Phoenix mom seeks answers after delay in son\u2019s critical medical equipment\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Tucson Moving Report\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/71841c7d449e6ab1ace6bce2f5277255\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Phoenix mom seeks answers after delay in son\u2019s critical medical equipment - Tucson Moving Report","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Phoenix mom seeks answers after delay in son\u2019s critical medical equipment - Tucson Moving Report","og_description":"A Phoenix mother says delays in replacing her medically fragile son\u2019s vital equipment left her terrified and without answers until On Your Side stepped in.","og_url":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410","og_site_name":"Tucson Moving Report","article_published_time":"2026-05-16T13:33:33+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/#\/schema\/person\/71841c7d449e6ab1ace6bce2f5277255"},"headline":"Phoenix mom seeks answers after delay in son\u2019s critical medical equipment","datePublished":"2026-05-16T13:33:33+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410"},"wordCount":682,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/a5b5966b554584ea27a2efed6e67c93f.avif","articleSection":["Interesting"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410","url":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410","name":"Phoenix mom seeks answers after delay in son\u2019s critical medical equipment - Tucson Moving Report","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/a5b5966b554584ea27a2efed6e67c93f.avif","datePublished":"2026-05-16T13:33:33+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/#\/schema\/person\/71841c7d449e6ab1ace6bce2f5277255"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/a5b5966b554584ea27a2efed6e67c93f.avif","contentUrl":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/a5b5966b554584ea27a2efed6e67c93f.avif","width":1200,"height":600},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=410#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Phoenix mom seeks answers after delay in son\u2019s critical medical equipment"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/","name":"Tucson Moving Report","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/#\/schema\/person\/71841c7d449e6ab1ace6bce2f5277255","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com"],"url":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/410","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=410"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/410\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/409"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=410"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=410"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=410"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}