Archive: 2005
Air Products adds Nightingale Medical
December 31, 2005HME News Staff
CONSOHOCKEN, Pa. - Air Products Healthcare recently purchased Indianapolis-based Nightingale Medical to expand its coverage in the Great Lakes region. Nightingale, which has additional locations in Anderson and Carmel, is the largest independent home care company in central Indiana, according to Air Products. Last year, Air Products acquired Melrose Park, Ill.-based Ultra Care, one of the largest privately held home respiratory and infusion companies in the country, to strengthen its presence in...
Bill would reimburse for safe needle disposal
December 31, 2005HME News Staff
YARMOUTH, Maine - Diabetic needle disposal containers are a low-cost item but providers don't sell many. A new Medicare proposal could change that.
Under H.R. 2841, beneficiaries would be reimbursed under Medicare Part D for costs associated with the disposal of needles and lancets through a sharps-by-mail or similar program or home needle destruction devices.
"Most people use a makeshift jug at home and you just throw it in your trash," said Mark Gielniak, vice president of Diabetes Plus in Warren,...
It's a first: Sleep surpasses oxygen
December 31, 2005HME News Staff
PITTSBURG, Kansas - For the first time, beginning this fall, Mt. Carmel Medical Equipment saw its sleep referrals jump ahead of oxygen referrals--a trend that doesn't surprise some industry watchers, who say it could begin to play out nationally.
General Manager Gary Miller suspects a pulmonologist who recently moved from New Jersey to sleepy Crawford County (population 40,000) tapped into an undiagnosed population of patients with potential sleep disorders and sent many of them his way for CPAPs...
Dr. Oleck jumps from Region B to Region C
December 31, 2005HME News Staff
WASHINGTON - On March 1, as part of CMS's reorganization of the DMERCs, Region B Medical Director Dr. Adrian Oleck will move to Region C.
CMS decided early last year to reorganize the DMERCs into two components, each overseen by a specialist contractor. One organization, the Medicare Affiliated Contractor or MAC, will handle a region's billing, customer service and other day-to-day operations. Each region will also have a Program Safeguard Contractor or PSC, overseen by a medical director, that handles...
Invacare program aimed at provider's cash sales
December 31, 2005HME News Staff
HOLLISTON, Mass. - The first batch of a new product flier, part of Invacare Supply Group's new direct mail program, ships in February. Invacare debuted the program, designed to help providers enter the "world" of cash sales, at Medtrade in October.
For "under $1,000," Invacare Supply will direct mail 10,000 four-page product fliers to zip codes specified by its HME customers. The fliers will be customized with the provider's company name.
"This is something retail drug chains are used to doing but...
Needle-free insulin delivery system begins clinical trials
December 31, 2005HME News Staff
WEST CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa. - Dermisonics on November 16 announced the launch of clinical trials to test its U-Strip Insulin Patch for skin sensitivity on patients with Type 2 diabetes. The patch is designed as a pain-free alternative insulin delivery method for the 55 million insulin users worldwide. The patches will be loaded with 150 units of Eli Lilly's Humalog insulin. The study will also focus on potential unique skin characteristics of diabetics. The insulin delivery market is estimated at $5.4...
Long-shot strategy saves provider
December 31, 2005HME News Staff
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Hato Rey Medical Supplies avoided a sizeable overpayment recently by successfully using a defense that hardly ever leads a provider to victory.
Palmetto GBA notified Hato Rey of a $131,420 overpayment this summer, charging the provider with supplying medically unnecessary power wheelchairs and accessories to 14 beneficiaries. Hato Rey appealed the decision, asserting the equipment was not only medical necessary but also backed by all the right documentation: CMNs, prescriptions,...
Category: Bariatrics
December 31, 2005HME News Staff
Products:
- Rapidly expanding repertoire goes beyond standard beds and wheelchairs into scooters, ADLs, walkers, crutches, canes, bath safety, transfer benches, patient lifts, orthopedic garments, shoes and hosiery. Some manufacturers carry 300 items classified as bariatric.
Demographics:
- There are 6 million to 8 million Americans identified as morbidly obese--100 pounds over their ideal weight. The prime age group is 40 to 55, which falls into the baby boomer population.
Related markets:
- Because...
Web site helps seniors compare Medicare drug plans
December 31, 2005HME News Staff
WASHINGTON - The Coalition to Advance Prescription Drug Education (CARxE) announced in December that the CARxE Benefit Gateway is now available at www.care.org. The site allows seniors to compare benefits and costs available in their local area. By providing specific information, content can be personalized for individual users. With Medicare Part D looming on the horizon, many seniors and their families are finding it difficult to decipher the various plans and some specialty pharmacy providers...
Pricing pressures handcuff vendors
December 31, 2005HME News Staff
WASHINGTON - A U.S. Senate proposal to eliminate Medicare's cap rental option for DME has given manufacturers the jitters. If the proposal goes through, they know, it's only a matter of time before providers come seeking price reductions.
The problem with that: You can't draw blood from a stone, say manufacturers of bent metal. Others, especially sleep manufacturers, aren't saying anything at all.
"On our side, there's not a whole heck of a lot to do price-wise," said Tom Tucker, Medline's vice president...