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2020: The year of automation?
January 14, 2020Liz Beaulieu, Editor
ATLANTA - HME providers will dig deeper into automating their businesses in 2020, predicts Brightree's Rob Boeye.To that end, Brightree has dedicated additional resources in the new year to helping providers automate their businesses by optimizing their software solutions, he says.“Providers are pretty good from a billing solution standpoint,” said Boeye, executive vice president of HME. “The need for continued automation is in intake, inventory management and patient engagement....
Bid notices make for chaotic week for providers
December 6, 2019Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
WASHINGTON - The preliminary bid evaluation notices that went out last week caused confusion among providers, who say CMS is asking them for information they already submitted as part of the bid process.The notifications, which went out Dec. 3, are likely the last communication bidders will receive until the single payment amounts for Round 2021 are announced next summer.“It's been a bit of a chaotic week,” said Cara Bachenheimer, chair of the government affairs practice at Brown & Fortunato....
'You've got to build muscle if you are going into a fight,' says George Kucka
June 2, 2017Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
SCHERERVILLE, Ind. - Provider George Kucka launched his first HME company in 1985. By 1990 or so, it was obvious that if he wanted to depend on the entitlement program as a source of revenue he would have to stay on top of things. So he got active in his state association, and started attending Medtrade and congressional fly-ins.Kucka, president of Fairmeadows Home Health Center in Schererville, Ind., received this year's AAHomecare/Mal Mixon Legislative Advocate Award during the association's recent...
Plan managers need to adapt requirements
April 24, 2017Liz Beaulieu, Editor
TAMPA, Fla. - Craig Kraft has his own beef with the health plan managers that are increasingly overseeing Medicaid programs in states like Florida.Kraft, the seating coordinator at the Shriners Hospitals for Children in Tampa says these managers are quick to follow Medicare's lead with restrictive policies like the in-the-home rule, but not constructive policies like requiring that an ATP be involved in the provision of complex rehab wheelchairs.“It'd be nice if it went both ways,” he...
Hurry up and wait
April 7, 2017Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
WASHINGTON - When AAHomecare officials met with Seema Verma for the first time last week, they were pleased to find the new CMS administrator up to speed on key industry issues like competitive bidding.“We had a very productive meeting,” said Tom Ryan, president and CEO. “We still have a long way to go on the road to meaningful fixes on competitive bidding and other HME policy priorities, but I'm convinced a strong working relationship with new leadership at CMS and Health and Human...
Expect a mixed bag in 2017, respondents say
November 18, 2016Tracy Orzel
YARMOUTH, Maine - Respondents to a recent HME Newspoll are split over whether 2017 will be a better year for the HME industry, with 51% saying they expect market conditions to worsen and 49% saying they'll improve.2017 will be the year of consolidation and closures, according to one respondent.“My company has already laid off 20% of its workforce and closed five of the 65 locations we have,” the respondent said. “We are looking to close an additional three locations in 2017 and...
Firm close to buying Drive, sources say
August 11, 2016HME News Staff
PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y. - Buyout firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice is in talks to buy Drive DeVilbiss for about $750 million, according to Reuters.CD&R, whose previous investments have included AssuraMed, which it sold to Cardinal Health for $2.1 billion in 2013, prevailed in an auction and could strike a deal in the coming days, Reuters reported on Aug. 10. As part of the deal, top execs at Drive would join CD&R as minority investors.Drive, which is partly owned by private equity firm Ferrer, Freeman...
PHS employee retires on high note
May 26, 2016HME News Staff
ST. PAUL, Minn. - Sandi Maguire, the former managing director of home care nursing for Pediatric Home Service, has been honored as Minnesota's Home Care Person of the year. Maquire, who retired May 13, has been with PHS since its inception in 1990. “Sandi has played an integral role in making home care what it is today in the state of Minnesota,” said PHS President Mark Hamman. “Her involvement from the very early days of home care, when it was rarely even considered and option,...
Program for joint conference announced
April 7, 2016HME News Staff
ARLINGTON, Va. - RESNA, NCART and NRRTS have announced the program for the first-ever Assistive Technology Collaborative Conference. The event, slated July 12-15 at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City in Arlington, Va., will include interactive exhibits; more than 50 workshops on best practices in assistive technology; research platforms and poster sessions; Capitol Hill visits; pre-conference instructional courses, including RESNA's Fundamentals in Assistive Technology Course; networking events;...
OMHA published updated manual
December 10, 2015HME News Staff
WASHINGTON - The Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals (OMHA) has made several changes to its Case Processing Manual, according to a notice posted in the Federal Register. The updated manual now includes several new chapters, including: Chapter 4 - Parties to an ALJ Hearing; Chapter 5 - Roles and Responsibilities of Parties to an ALJ Hearing; and Chapter 6 - Contractor Roles to an ALJ Hearing. OMHA is asking providers to review the requirements to represent a beneficiary in an ALJ hearing and the...