Archive: September 2002

After spending the better part of a year getting a firsthand glimpse into the patient side of rehabilitation, Simon Margolis is rested, recovered and ready to enter yet another distinctive phase of his noteworthy career: president of the Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America. The 25-year veteran of the rehab industry says his batteries are now fully recharged from months of cardiac rehab following a December 2001 heart attack. And while taking the RESNA helm...

Selecting an HME billing company WITH JIM PHILLIPS Q. When it comes to my billing department, is there a size or time at which I should be looking at outsourcing the billing? A. Generally, we suggest that all new companies entering the HME industry consider starting with an experienced consultant and billing company. In this manner, facilities have the opportunity to "do things right" from the very beginning. There is not really a particular or ideal point that we suggest providers take their billing...

ORLANDO, Fla. - A man claiming to be the Rotech Healthcare employee who booked $30 million in bogus business with the Department of Veteran's Affairs, says he did so under intense pressure to make the company look good and to keep his $250,000 a year job. "The pressure was relentless," said the man who called HME News but declined to give his name. "It was, 'Well our numbers don't look good this month, and if we don't come up with something we are all screwed. Come on, do something, do something.'...

North Carolina RALEIGH, N.C. - After a vigorous lobbying effort, state providers convinced lawmakers to strike competitive bidding from the state's 2003 budget language. They also staved off a 5% across the board cut to the fee schedule. Instead, lawmakers let the industry suggest how to eliminate $569,000 from the state's DME budget. To meet that target, providers have proposed a $3.73% cut to the fee schedule. They also located an additional $150,000 in savings by showing Medicaid how it could...

Fastrack HME/Infusion Enterprise System HME account management The HME/Infusion Enterprise System for Windows/SQL is compatible with Windows 98/NT/2000/XP platforms. It features a general ledger account link for sending financial information from the Fastrack system to virtually any accounting system. Automatically transfer accounts receivable from one payer to another with a single click. An integrated document imaging feature allows for batch scanning of HME and infusion delivery tickets for automatic...

Body Tech Dynamic Fixed Lateral Support Wheelchair hardware First used in the fixed lateral support product in the BT 4000 line, Body Tech NW's titanium-based hardware provides end users with total support and "smart" design that springs back after use. Booth No. 4666 Falcon Rehab Atlas Articulating Lateral Supports Positioning Device Atlas Articulating Lateral Supports are designed to solve traditional problems, such as insufficient ad-justability, bending under stress or load, difficulty with...

NORTHBROOK, Ill. - A report in the June issue of CHEST is associating a 12-fold increase in the diagnosis of sleep apnea with an increase in the number of accredited sleep labs and sleep publications in the past nine years. In the report, "Increased Physician-Reported Sleep Apnea," CHEST used the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) to determine whether there has been an increase in physician reporting of sleep apnea. It found that the diagnosis of sleep apnea in outpatients increased...

WASHINGTON - At least one billing expert is hailing CMS's proposal to create a process for beneficiaries to appeal local or national Medicare coverage determinations as good news, not only for beneficiaries but providers. "It gives the provider more ammunition," said Ward Cook, president and CEO of Allegro Medical Billing in Tampa, Fla. "When the provider calls and complains, they think, 'Well, naturally, he wants to get paid.' The beneficiary has a lot more weight." Although beneficiaries who...

Where is our industry vulnerable - a question many of us talk about in so many ways day-to-day. Whether it is in the government/reimbursement issues, dealer profitability or quality of the products that serve our market. Vulnerability of our industry is on all of our minds, but we have to ask the next question... what can we do about it? Which specific areas of vulnerability? 1. Government/Reimbursement 2. Dealer Profitability 3. Quality 4. Technology These four areas affect every part of...

GREENVILLE, S.C. - The rehab manager for an HME store here has taken a fresh approach to marketing by building relationships with prospective occupational therapy and physical therapy assistants at a local technical college. For two years, Michael Causey of Carolina Homecare Medical Equipment has hit the Greenville Technical College campus at the end of each the spring and fall semesters, not carrying books, but medical equipment. His goal: help students in the OT and PT assistant program familiarize...