Tag: Hurricane Helene
ADS, US Med donate diabetes supplies
November 12, 2024HME News Staff
CARLSBAD, Calif. – Advanced Diabetes Supply and US Med have partnered with Omnis Health to bring diabetes testing supplies to the Mountain Area Health Education Center in Asheville, N.C. Their donation included essential diabetes management supplies, including blood glucose meters, lancets and test strips. “Asheville was one of the areas in Western North Carolina that was most affected by Hurricane Helene,” said Bill Mixon, ADS CEO. “We know the people of this region are working...
Recent IV shortages call for real fix, stakeholders say
November 8, 2024Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
YARMOUTH, Maine – A recent shortage of intravenous solutions underscores the need to address the fragile supply chain for infusion therapy solutions, says Connie Sullivan of the National Home Infusion Association.
While flooding in September halted production of intravenous solution bags at the Baxter International plant in Marion, N.C., chronic shortages of IV solutions, enteral formulas and other products are an ongoing concern, she says.
“This patient community has...
Option Care pushes through disaster for strong quarter
November 1, 2024Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
BANNOCKBURN, Ill. – Despite disruption to its supply chain, Option Care Health’s quick and “aggressive” response allowed the provider to continue servicing patients, with minimal impact, CEO John Rademacher said.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, flooding halted production of intravenous solution bags at the Baxter International plant in Marion, N.C.
“From the moment of the closure, needless to say, there were immediate actions that we took to not...
Aeroflow, United Way coordinate thousands of boxes of supplies
October 28, 2024HME News Staff
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Aeroflow Health has partnered with United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County, among other organizations, to provide immediate relief and supplies following the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. Aeroflow Health and United Way quickly collaborated to open a warehouse donation site just days after historic flooding in Western North Carolina devastated the area. In just 15 days, there were more than 700 volunteer responses and more than 2,600 boxes of essential supplies, such as...
Third dimension
October 25, 2024Liz Beaulieu, Editor
In the time we reported on the November issue (roughly three weeks), not one but two major hurricanes hit the Southeast. Both made landfall in Florida, but one, Hurricane Helene also had an impact as far north as Tennessee and western North Carolina.
After Hurricane Helene, provider Brian Wilson told us his delivery techs described the Asheville, N.C., area like this: “It’s like an atomic bomb went off.”
When storms like these strike, HME providers are particularly impacted.
The...
NHIA urges more steps in addressing IV solution shortage
October 16, 2024HME News Staff
WASHINGTON – The National Home Infusion Association believes more needs to be done to minimize the impact on patient care and ensure equitable access to life-savings IV therapies after flooding halted production at the Baxter International plant in Marion, N.C. In a letter to Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, the association wrote: “As the leading voice for the home and alternate site infusion community, we write to share our concerns and offer recommendations...
Aeroflow expresses gratitude for Cherokee support
October 14, 2024HME News Staff
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Aeroflow Health extended its thanks to Principal Chief Michell Hicks of Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Tribal Casino Gaming Enterprise and Harris Cherokee Casino and Resort for their extraordinary assistance and support during Hurricane Helene. In the wake of the devastating storm, Chief Hicks and the tribal leadership provided essential support and resources that ensured the safety and the well-being of Aeroflow’s employees and their families. Their swift action...
Providers on Helene’s front lines: ‘We are stretched thin but able to help’
October 4, 2024Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
A week after Hurricane Helene brought flooding and devastation across the Southeast, "it's like an atomic bomb went off," and HME providers, like impacted residents, are still assessing the damage and trying to recover, all the while taking care of patients.
The Category 4 storm, one of the worst in U.S. history, made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region Sept. 26, before sweeping wind and record-breaking rainfall across a large area that included parts of...
Dispatch from Asheville: Aeroflow Health makes sure ‘no one is left behind’
October 4, 2024Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Of all the havoc wrought by Hurricane Helene, few places were more devastated than Asheville, N.C., and the surrounding areas. For Aeroflow Health, which is headquartered there, the storm brought a heavy toll, even as the provider stood up operations with an “all-hands-on-deck” approach to its employees, patients and community, says CEO Casey Hite.
“We focused on keeping things simple and doing what was right,” he said. “We are processing...
In brief: Hurricane waivers, NIV advocacy, CRT lobby
October 4, 2024HME News Staff
WASHINGTON – CMS will permit people with Medicare who have lost or had damage to their DMEPOS products because of Hurricane Helene to receive replacements of such items and services, according to a bulletin from AAHomecare.
Specifically, CMS waivers for Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee state that:
When DMEPOS is lost, destroyed, irreparably damaged, or otherwise rendered unusable, CMS is allowing DME MACs to have the flexibility to waive...