Briefs

Major Chicagoland HME acquires 500 O2 patients MELROSE PARK, Ill. —Ultra Care acquired the business assets of Oxysound, a Fox River Grove, Ill., company providing respiratory and other home medical services in the far northwestern region of the Chicagoland area. This merger of operations and resources will enhance the combined company's ability to provide a full range of home health care products and services to an expanded market. The acquisition will nearly double Ultra Care's oxygen business to rougly 1,000 patients, according to a company release. New York passes HME licensure bill ALBANY, N.Y. — Five years after beginning work on a licensure bill for durable medical equipment providers, members of the state HME association saw their efforts pay off Oct. 1 when Gov. George Pataki signed the bill into law. The new law requires licensure for providers who supply "technologically sophisticated" home medical equipment. That includes, but is not limited to: oxygen and oxygen delivery systems; ventilation and aspiration devices; respiratory disease management services; electronic and computer driven wheelchairs. BusinessWeek: Apria's board one of the best NEW YORK — Apria Healthcare garnered some positive press last month when BusinessWeek magazine named its board of directors one of the best in corporate America. Historically content to rubber-stamp management decisions, the best boards are now true partners, with members meeting frequently with executives to confer on strategy and consulting with one another to evaluate management performance. The job will become more difficult, requiring more time and more technical knowhow, especially for audit-committee members, BusinessWeek reported.