Archive: October 2008
Do what’s right and fight the good fight
October 31, 2008HME News Staff
The recent financial crisis in our country started me thinking about our industry and the implications of macro-economics.
The people we serve need homecare equipment to go on with their lives. This service/product lifeline is not optional to them personally, and the money it saves for the healthcare system is critical. The need for quality home care is of particular concern in light of the ongoing (no, it is not over) fight over so-called competitive bidding. This evil program was stalled by a...
DME MAC issues wheelchair bulletins
October 31, 2008HME News Staff
FARGO, N.D.--Noridian Administrative Services recently reminded providers of the payment criteria for wheelchair headrests. Wheelchair options and accessories have had a high comprehensive error rate testing (CERT) rate. Noridian also issued corrections to the local coverage determination (LCD) for wheelchair bases. The latest version of the LCD omitted four lines describing the criteria needed for coverage for K0003 and K0004 wheelchair bases. For more information, visit www.noridianmedicare.com.
Save time, money for education
October 31, 2008HME News Staff
Q. With all the competition in HME education, why is it still important to attend state association events?
A. Every time we turn on the TV, go on the Internet and read newspapers, we hear about the economic woes that confront us. Many providers are nervous about their financial futures and are actively seeking ways to save money. Within our industry, we hear of providers freezing or reducing budgets for travel and education. They're asking themselves: Where is the best return on my education dollars?...
Acute Rehab hosts annual hunt
October 31, 2008HME News Staff
VALDOSTA, Ga.--Acute Rehab Equipment hosts its ninth Able-Disable Hunt on Nov. 1. Hunters of all ages travel from as far away as North Carolina for a day of hunting in southern Georgia, said Mike Daniels, owner. Up to 40 adults and children in wheelchairs hunt during morning and afternoon sessions and enjoy a group lunch. This year, more children than adults signed up for the event, Daniels said.
Short takes
October 31, 2008HME News Staff
The FDA has given Research Triangle Park, N.C.-based Teleflex Medical the OK to market the Hudson RCI Neb-U-Mask, a respiratory device that allows delivery of both aerosolized medication and a high concentration of medical gases to treat acute asthma exacerbations, the manufacturer announced Sept. 30…Invacare and Invacare Top End were two of 10 major sponsors of a new event for injured veterans organized by the Department of Veterans Affairs. The event, the National Veterans Summer Sports Clinic,...
ISG marks anniversary with new products
October 31, 2008HME News Staff
MILFORD, Mass.--Invacare Supply Group commemorated five years of private labeling for Invacare in October by offering providers several new products and sale prices.
New Invacare brand products include overnight protective underwear and TRUEresult no-code blood glucose meters. The distributor counts Invacare-brand incontinence and diabetic supplies as its biggest selling and most profitable products, said Greg Bosco, director of merchandising and marketing.
“When Invacare purchased Suburban...
POCs: ‘You didn’t have to worry as much,’ cruiser says
October 31, 2008HME News Staff
Len Jozwiak, a 64-year-old from Reading, Pa., with pulmonary hypertension and COPD, is an experienced cruiser. He's been on three of the last four cruises organized by the American Respiratory Alliance of Western Pennsylvania, including this year's cruise to Alaska (See Story page 1), and he plans to go on many more. But he wasn't always so adventurous. Jozwiak was devastated when he learned, six years ago, that he would have to be on oxygen 24-7. He spoke with HME News about how he hasn't let his...
Providers clamor for patients
October 31, 2008HME News Staff
The sale of Independence Home Pharmacy's (IHP's) assets-including 20,000 nebulizer patients-to Med4Home, Lincare's respiratory pharmacy, has raised eyebrows among industry insiders.
The price: $40,000, according to an asset purchase agreement dated Aug. 22.
“That's a sweetheart deal,” said one provider. “They gave those patients to Lincare for nothing.”
IHP filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and abruptly ceased operations in August (See HME News, October 2007).
With some...
Gary Sheehan: ‘It didn’t take long to fall in love’
October 31, 2008HME News Staff
Gary Sheehan knows what you may be thinking about him.
At just 30 years old and with a baby face to boot, the president and CEO of Cape Medical Supply in Sandwich, Mass., knows that “when people come in to meet with me, they're sitting there saying, ‘This guy looks like a kid,'” laughs Sheehan.
But just whose kid he is makes all the difference in Sheehan's on-the-job performance. As the son of Cape Medical Supply's founders Mark and Nancy Sheehan, he understands the incredible opportunity...
Kay Johnson: ‘It takes a special kind of family’
October 31, 2008HME News Staff
Few family business challenges become quite as sticky as navigating a succession from one generation to the next. This difficult process became even more thorny for James and Peggy Silliman as they approached retirement from Midwest Medical Services, the Watertown, S.D., HME company they founded in 1983.
The Sillimans had taken on partners Kay Johnson and Rory Creager in 1995, but they learned that their own children were not interested in continuing the family business into the next generation....