Archive: November 2011
Complex rehab: Out of Round 2, but in demo
November 30, 2011HME News Staff
WASHINGTON - CMS announced Nov. 30 that it removed ultra lightweight manual wheelchairs, gimbaled ventilator trays, and push activated power assist devices from the standard wheelchair product category for Round 2.
Industry stakeholders had worked to have these codes dropped from competitive bidding since the product categories were announced in August.
In a bulletin to members, however, Peggy Walker, a billing and reimbursement adviser for The VGM Group's U.S. Rehab, stated that the exclusion...
The Lyme & the coconut
November 30, 2011Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
Had dinner with my friend Kellie last night who, when I went to check my blood sugar, was reminded of her recent frustrations with the health care system.
Kellie hadn't been feeling too well. Achy joints, low energy and other vague symptoms that can point to any of a number of diagnoses. Kellie is pretty sure it's Lyme disease, but was referred to an endocrinologist who kept insisting her symptoms might be related to blood sugars.
"It's not my blood sugar," she kept arguing. (Kellie eats well, exercises...
Meet BidPrep Debbie
November 29, 2011Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
RIVERSIDE, Calif. - Provider Chris Rice is no fan of competitive bidding but he says, since it's probably here to stay, the industry needs to be prepared.
"There's enough folks trying to dismantle the program, and more power to them," said Rice, director of marketing for Riverside, Calif.-based Diamond Respiratory Care, which won contracts in every category it submitted bids for in Rounds 1 and 1.2. "I am focused on, if we have to live with this, how do we live with it?"
In October, he launched...
CMS: Registration for Round 2 begins next week
November 29, 2011HME News Staff
BALTIMORE - CMS today posted a more detailed timeline for Round 2 of competitive bidding to www.dmecompetitivebid.com.
The timeline is as follows:
Dec. 5, 2011: Registration for user IDs and passwords begins
Dec. 22, 2011: Authorized officials are strongly encouraged to register no later than this date
Jan. 12, 2012: Backup authorized officials are strongly encouraged to register no later than this date
Jan. 30, 2012: CMS opens 60-day bid window for Round 2 and national mail-order competition
Feb....
Update on GF's 'Made in the USA Strategic Initiative'
November 28, 2011Liz Beaulieu, Editor
ATLANTA - Graham-Field (GF) has further cemented its commitment to manufacturing its Patriot Homecare Bed in the United States with two recent investments.
Basic American Medical Products, a manufacturer of healthcare beds and a GF Health Products factory brand, has expanded its Fond du Lac, Wis., facility by 40,000 square feet and installed a high-tech fiber optic laser tube cutting system, GF announced last month.
“Five to 10 years ago, the big buzz word was outsourcing and we're not convinced...
Lobbying for an alternative, fighting bad press and redefining the way you do business
November 28, 2011Liz Beaulieu, Editor
Below you'll find the HME News TV schedule for the next few months. This latest schedule includes a mix of interviews taped at Medtrade in October and the HME News Business Summit in September, two of the industry's must-attend events. And the interviewees include the likes of Cara Bachenheimer, Seth Johnson and Tyler Wilson, some of the industry's biggest names. Tune in to hear what they have to say about lobbying for an alternative to competitive bidding, fighting bad press and redefining the way...
It's what you do before, not after, you eat the mashies
November 23, 2011Liz Beaulieu, Editor
I thought it was interesting that Theresa mentioned in her blog yesterday how she and her family take a stroll after eating more than usual, but within reason, for Thanksgiving.
(I also thought it was interesting that she made fun of me for eating leftover fish for lunch. Yes, some get turned off by the smell of fish reheated in a microwave, but surely, someone as healthy as Theresa would acknowledge the benefits of eating fish for lunch versus any number of things, like frozen entrees—yes,...
It's not about the mashies
November 22, 2011Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
Last week, in anticipation of a celebratory dinner (yay, we survived Medtrade), my coworkers were talking about how they weren't going to eat much that day so they could, well, stuff themselves at the restaurant. My suggestion was to eat sensibly all day (they all tend to, for the most part), and then—wait for it—eat sensibly at dinner as well.
Needless to say, that went over like fish in an office microwave (I'm looking at you, Editor Liz).
But answer me this: Why must a celebration...
Super committee delays inevitable
November 22, 2011Liz Beaulieu, Editor
WASHINGTON - Expect a bumpy 2012 now that the super committee has failed to come up with a deficit reduction plan, industry stakeholders say.
The super committee announced last week that it couldn't agree on a way to reduce the deficit by at least $1.2 trillion over 10 years, triggering automatic cuts slated to go into effect Jan. 1, 2013. Among them: a 2% across-the-board cut to Medicare, which represents, according to reports, a $13 billion blow to HME over 10 years.
But industry stakeholders...
In brief: Berwick steps down, OIG releases semiannual report
November 22, 2011HME News Staff
WASHINGTON - CMS Administrator Don Berwick will step down from his post Dec. 2, according to news reports last week. He will be replaced by Marilyn Tavenner, principal deputy administrator and COO. Berwick, a pediatrician before becoming a Harvard professor, stepped down after Republicans succeeded in blocking his confirmation by the Senate. His temporary appointment was scheduled to run out at the end of the year. Tavenner was formerly Virginia's top healthcare official.
OIG releases semiannual...