Archive: September 2014
ResMed, Brightree plan enhancements
September 30, 2014HME News Staff
SAN DIEGO - ResMed has expanded its relationship with Brightree, with both companies agreeing to enhance the integration of ResMed's U-Sleep compliance solution within the Brightree solution and add new features from ResMed's AirView patient management system. The first of these enhancements is salted to introduced in November. Brightree and ResMed began working together in 2013 to automate the onboarding of patients that use ResMed S9 PAP devices into U-Sleep.
$24 million Medicare fraud alleged
September 30, 2014HME News Staff
HOUSTON- Angel Mirabal, of Miami, was arrested Sept. 26 on charges of scheming to defraud Medicare. From April 2013 to July 2013, Mirabal allegedly conspired to bill Medicare $24 million in fraudulent claims for reimbursement through Quick Solutions Medical Supplies. According to the indictment said Mirabal and his co-conspirators used fraudulent shell companies to launder and disburse the proceeds from the health care fraud scheme.
Provider makes award triple play
September 30, 2014HME News Staff
NEW BERLIN, Wis. - Home Care Medical has received the HME Provider of the Year award from the Wisconsin Association of Medical Equipment Services (WAMES). This is the third year in a row the provider has been honored with the award. Also receiving awards: Jim Spellman, director of operations and WAMES president, received the Industry Excellence award for his efforts on the WAMES Legislative Committee; and Donna Smith, director of respiratory care, received the Distinguished Service award for her...
#Pharmacists ready to tweet
September 26, 2014HME News Staff
ALEXANDRIA, Va. - Pharmacists from around the world will take part in a tweet-a-thon Oct. 2. The second annual event will allow pharmacists to highlight the positive impact pharmacist have on patients, communities and the healthcare system, according to a release from the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA). Last year m ore than 7,100 tweets with the hashtag #Pharmacist were sent. “From preventing potentially adverse reactions, to teaching newly diagnosed diabetic patients how...
Griffin sports
September 26, 2014Leah Hoenen
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - To fulfill its mission of treating the families of its clients like family, Griffin Home Health Care has launched a new division, Griffin Sports, Health & Wellness. Now, when families come in to pick up Dad's new wheelchair, they can find a knee brace for an injured student and some fitness gear to help her recover.“It dawned on me that we were missing a huge chunk of your family, specifically folks that are very much interested in wellness,” said Richie Griffin,...
Reporter's notebook: Loyal customers, the ABN and creativity
September 26, 2014Liz Beaulieu, Editor
Suppose you were an HME provider supplying a Medicare beneficiary with oxygen therapy through a competitive bidding contract. Suppose the beneficiary also needs non-prescription items like a hospital bed, mattress and other HME for which you don't have contracts.
Suppose the beneficiary and his or her children want to continue doing business with you, even though you don't have the contracts. What are your options?
“You can't sell the equipment to the patient, so we sell the...
Technology gives Geneva Woods leg up
September 26, 2014John Andrews
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Geneva Woods is navigating some rugged terrain in its quest for success. And that's not a reference to the pharmacy provider's service territory, which includes vast swaths of wilderness in Alaska, Montana and Wyoming.Based in Anchorage, the company combines pharmacy, infusion, mobility and respiratory categories, serving patients in remote, heavily wooded areas. Managing that range of services and geography requires special category expertise, logistics prowess and operational...
Home infusion: Stakeholders arm themselves with data
September 26, 2014Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
WASHINGTON - The stars could align for the latest iteration of a bill to require Medicare to cover home infusion therapy, say industry stakeholders.
Similar bills have been introduced over the past several years, but stakeholders have a few things working in their favor this year. The first: a new study by Avalere, a non-partisan healthcare policy firm, that found Medicare could save $80 million over a 10-year period if it covers home infusion therapy. The National Home Infusion Association (NHIA)...
Marketing: The landscape has changed. Have you?
September 26, 2014Guest Commentary
Streamlining operations and shifting product lines to offset the revenue lost to Medicare's competitive bidding program has dominated the attentions of HME providers for the last several years. All the while, going almost un-noticed, the marketing landscaped changed, leaving the traditional marketing function of HME companies less effective than it should be. Marketers outside of HME, and to a great extent outside of health care, began to market products and services in a way that doesn't let...
CAMPS co-locates at Medtrade Spring
September 26, 2014HME News Staff
LAS VEGAS - The California Association of Medical Product Suppliers (CAMPS) will co-locate its annual meeting with Medtrade Spring in 2015. The events will take place March 30-April 1 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas. “This co-location agreement saves CAMPS members time and money by allowing them to go to one trade show instead of two,” stated Kevin Gaffney, group show director, Medtrade, in a press release. CAMPS and Medtrade had a similar agreement a decade ago. CAMPS...