HME VIP joins VIP

MIAMI and ATLANTA - VIP Medical Group says it offers HME providers a one-stop shop for all their operational needs, now that it has brought on board long-time industry consultant Jane Wilkinson-Bunch.

Wilkinson-Bunch, now a partner at VIP, will lead the company's new lineup of compliance, billing and consulting services.

“With competitive bidding coming back and more providers outsourcing this time around due to the reductions in reimbursement, there's a heavy burden on them,” said Wilkinson-Bunch, chief compliance and consulting officer at VIP. “When you look at all the issues providers are facing, it became very transparent that it was the right time to re-enter this industry.”

Wilkinson-Bunch has been part of the HME industry for more than 33 years, many of them running her own billing and consulting company. But due to an illness, she sold the company, reduced her workload and skipped the industry's speaking circuit for several years. She's now back at it.

VIP will combine Wikinson-Bunch's services with its existing products and services, including product fulfillment and a proprietary electronic management records (EMR) system.

“You have CRM software and you have EHR software, and our EMR system tries to be somewhere in the middle and use the features of both,” said Michael Kochen, partner and COO and head of VIP's technology division. “There's a need for it—there's a general need for technology disruption in this industry.”

VIP's fuller package of products and services will help set apart the company, Kochen says.

“They've just sold you software; we're going to be interactive,” he said. “It's not just Jane's consulting—I also do technology consulting. We're going to help you become more successful.”

VIP allows customers to select the products and services they want, much like they'd select toppings for a pizza, Kochen said.

“If you just want the billing module or want consulting for bidding or want help with a HIPAA audit—you can pick and choose what you want,” Kochen said. “Every case is different. We don't want to be cookie cutter.”

Wilkinson-Bunch says she's happy to be back and happy to be partnering with a company like VIP that will help bring her services full circle.

“Consulting's great, but if you're not able to then help them with implementation, it's not so great,” she said. “I'd often go back to clients and say, 'You haven't implemented anything that I suggested.' Now I can offer them a complete solution.”