Archive: January 2002
Providers (not bennies) must file claims for glucose supplies
January 31, 2002HME News Staff
Providers (not bennies) must file claims for glucose supplies
WASHINGTON - An advisory that Medicare will no longer accept claims filed by beneficiaries for glucose supplies and test strips starting April 1 should serve only as a reminder to most HME providers.
But for pharmacies selling the supplies, having to file claims on behalf of beneficiaries may spell trouble, according to Nancy Burma, president of the Minneapolis-based Alternative Billing Solutions.
"Every HME provider I know is already...
O2 providers: Knowledge is power with conservers
January 31, 2002HME News Staff
Although oxygen conservers and regulators aren't brand-new technology, their usage has grown considerably in the past couple years, respiratory providers say. That dramatic upturn, they contend, presents an opportunity to forge closer relationships with referral sources.
In fact, conservers may actually help solidify the respiratory provider's role as equipment expert in the home healthcare continuum as more physicians, nurses and case managers inquire about prescribing them for patients. Those...
Amigo continues to develop dealer network
January 31, 2002HME News Staff
BRIDGEPORT, Mi. - While Electric Mobility believes its best chance for success lies in selling direct to the consumer, Amigo Mobility International, a one-time proponent of selling direct, is sprinting in the opposite direction.
In December, Amigo, which ended its direct sales efforts three years ago, added five rep groups in 2001 to help boost its dealer business and planned to add two more last month.
"To do justice to our product lines, it would be cost prohibitive to put enough people on the...
Do you agree that home medical equipment providers are best represented in Washington, D.C., by an association that
January 31, 2002HME News Staff
"I don't think there are strong enough words for how much I disagree. How can they do that when they don't even know
January 31, 2002HME News Staff
-Â Healthcare attorney Elizabeth Hogue on the OIG-held belief that much of the fraud and abuse in the Hme industry could be prevented if only physicians were more involved.
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"It's just another one of those things that you can't believe is happening to you."
-Â Provider Mark Manchester on being asked to return money a bankrupt company paid him.
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People
Providers
The Accreditation for Health Care (ACHC) has appointed Mickey Letson to its board of commissioners....
Expanded CPAP guidelines effective April 1
January 31, 2002HME News Staff
WASHINGTON - CMS has made its acquiescence to expanded CPAP coverage official by announcing an April 1 start date for the new policy. Sleep providers are both pleased and optimistic that it will bring a groundswell of new business.
The revised National Coverage Decision guidelines, under consideration by CMS since last fall, will adhere to the clinically accepted Apnea Hypopnea Index, a sleep pattern benchmark that is less restrictive than Medicare's current standard. While Medicare's current eligibility...
Ludicrous study
January 31, 2002HME News Staff
The article about the study showing DME's don't inform Medicare beneficiaries (see "Study: Suppliers do little to inform beneficiaries," Dec. 15, 2001, p. 8) is totally ludicrous. If we don't inform them, they can claim ignorance and not pay anything under the rule the carriers use. "If you didn't know that Medicare would not pay for this item you are not responsible for payment."
That blows the entire article out of the water. It needs to be published that who ever did the study (the Medicare Rights...
Provider propels pharmacy/HME mix with new showroom
January 31, 2002HME News Staff
Provider propels pharmacy/HME mix with new showroom
NIAGRA FALLS, N.Y. - While few drug stores dare handle the meat of the homecare industry, a pharmacy here recently moved into a larger facility - complete with a showroom - so it could increase its HME offerings.
"I've always looked for niches along the way, things the big chains aren't doing," said Owner Al Mutto, whose Pine Pharmacy and Home Care Center had its beginnings 17 years ago in an 800-square-foot facility. "Home medical equipment's...
Sleeping his way to success
January 31, 2002HME News Staff
Killmer to add two centers, gross $1.5M in 2002
When Ed Killmer, whose background is marketing, wanted to start a business nearly six years ago, two things jumped out at him. First, the aging Baby Boomer population; second, the statistic that up to 5% of people over 40 years old have sleep apnea.
With that, Killmer moved from Dallas, where he was teaching business classes and working as a consultant, to Tampa, Fla. He formed Bay Area Sleep Diagnostics Center and immediately kicked off a TV advertising...
CMS issues new codes for diabetic shoe inserts
January 31, 2002HME News Staff
WASHINGTON - CMS has discontinued the HCPCS code for multiple-density inserts for diabetic shoes (A5502) and replaced it with three new codes. Industry sources say the impact of the change won't be clear until CMS establishes allowables. CMS defines the new codes by how they're formed: with external heat source (A5509), without external heat source (A5510), from model of patient's foot (A5511). Already, in its December 2001 bulletin, the Region B DMERC states that A5510 doesn't meet Medicare guidelines...