In brief: CMS offers details, SeQual expands

BALTIMORE - CMS has released the third in a series of articles on national competitive bidding, this time addressing "special circumstances and exceptions of particular interest to physicians and other treating practitioners, SNFs and NFs, and physical and occupational therapists in independent practice." Find the Medicare Learning Network (MLN) Matters article at www.cms.hhs.gov/MLNMattersArticles/downloads/SE0807.pdf. SeQual expands in Europe SAN DIEGO - SeQual Technologies opened a European service and distribution center in Eindhoven, Netherlands, this month. According to the company: "The European market is growing rapidly and a centralized location is necessary to improve customer service and technical support." The new center will allow for constant communications, accurate distribution and faster service turnaround times, the company stated. SeQual manufactures the Eclipse personal ambulatory oxygen system. "SeQual is dedicated to helping patients on a global basis through our technology and now with the opening of the European headquarters, we are better able to service patients traveling abroad who use the Eclipse as their sole source of oxygen," stated Ron Richard, the company's senior vice president of sales and marketing. AAHomecare names new officers WASHINGTON - AAHomecare has elected a new slate of officers to its board of directors, the association announced this month. Alan Landauer, CEO of Landauer Metropolitan in New York, has agreed to serve a second term as chairman of the board; Joel Mills, president and CEO of Advanced Home Care in North Carolina, will serve again as vice chairman; A.J. Filippis, president and CEO of Wright & Filippis in Michigan, was elected secretary; and Georgie Blackburn, vice president of government relations and legislative affairs for Blackburn's in Pennsylvania, has agreed to serve a second term as treasurer. The association's executive committee includes Tom Ryan, president of HomeCare Concepts; John Marsland, vice president and general manager of Air Products Healthcare; and Larry Higby, CEO of Apria Healthcare. Rose Schafhauser, the executive director of the Midwest Association for Medical Equipment Services (MAMES), takes the position of chairman of the State Leader's Council, replacing Karyn Estrella. New board members, at large: Carol Laumer, Wayne Knewasser, Chris Can and Kees Regeling. Harmar adds stairway lifts to product line SARASOTA, Fla. - Harmar Mobility bolstered its product line recently by acquiring stairway lift manufacturer Summit Lifts. It also unveiled a detailed Internet sales policy. Summit's lifts will serve as the capstone of Harmar's home accessibility products line, which already includes vertical platform lifts and bath lifts, Harmar stated in a release. Going forward, Harmar will continue to use both the Harmar and Summit brand names and provide its brick-and-mortar dealers with separately-branded products that will not be sold competitively through Internet dealers. This strategy will permit Harmar's dealers to avoid having prices for their products compared to the prices for similar but distinct products sold over the Internet. This will allow competition based on product features and value, not just cost, Harmar stated. Harmar also will provide Summit's existing Internet dealers with a continued supply of accessibility products. Additionally, Harmar will expand the Summit brand to include new products marketed exclusively via the Internet. Apria CEO donates to Schwarzenegger LAKE FOREST, Calif. - Apria Healthcare CEO Larry Higby has donated $10,000 to California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's redistricting ballot initiative, The California Majority Report reported April 15. The initiative, which Schwarzenegger aims to get on a Nov. 4 ballot, would give an independent commission the power to redraw political district boundaries, not the legislature or the governor. Other donors to the cause: New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who donated $250,000 in April. In other news, Apria signed a 10-year, $3.14 million lease for 40,000 square feet of industrial space in Henderson, Nevada, the Las Vegas Business Press reported in April.