Medicare officials are considering making it easier to be checked for sleep apnea by paying for home diagnostic testing.

Currently Medicare only pays for a sleep apnea treatment dubbed C-PAP if the problem was diagnosed in a sleep laboratory. But in December officials proposed expanding coverage to include those identified through home testing. Medicare is the government health program for older and disabled Americans.

You have through Sunday to visit Medicare’s Web site and comment on the proposal. A decision is expected in March.

Associated Press reporter Lauran Neergaard noted in her recent story that the Medicare debate is significant because private insurers are expected to follow the government program’s lead.

Sleep apnea, which sometimes includes snoring loud enough to wake up the entire house, affects an estimated 18 million Americans. It is linked to sleep deprivation and an increased risk of high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke and diabetes. It occurs when throat muscles momentarily collapse, cutting off the oxygen flow and eventually causing sufferers to jerk awake. C-PAP treats the condition by increasing a patient’s air supply during slumber.