Tag: Retail
Retail as a lifeline: Apple Homecare’s answer to Medicare pressures
September 10, 2025Liz Beaulieu, Editor
STERLING, Mass. – The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced the return of its competitive bidding program for durable medical equipment (DME), a move that has stirred mixed emotions among providers like Joni Milluzzo, owner and CEO of Apple Homecare and Rehab Medical Equipment.
Milluzzo, a respiratory therapist, vividly remembers the program’s initial launch in 2013 and the toll it took on her business, which at the time focused heavily on home oxygen,...
AECorner, Health Mobius partner
June 9, 2025HME News Staff
CHICAGO – A new partnership will combine product reviews and educational content from Adaptive Equipment & Caregiving Corner (AECorner) with the distribution network of Health Mobius, connecting innovative adaptive solutions with HME providers, pharmacies and consumers. “Our mission at Health Mobius has always been to empower health care providers and retailers with the best tools and products to serve their patients and customers,” said Kamal Haddad, CEO of Health Mobius. “By...
Gilgal Medical bets on Florida and retail
July 12, 2024Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
ORLANDO, Fla. – Industry consolidation and low reimbursement have created a large gap in the local DME landscape in Florida, and Gilgal Medical Supplies sees that as a “big opportunity,” says Tom Chacko, vice president and one of the company’s owners.
The company launched in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, opening its first store in St. Cloud in the location of a DME that was closing. Six months later, it opened a second location in Orlando in the location vacated...
Are HME providers overcoming retail reticence?
November 13, 2023John Andrews
The concept of retail is not new for the HME industry. Its past stretches back decades, though it has had trouble gaining traction among providers. That may finally be changing, however, as attitudes become more receptive and opportunities continue to grow.
Tim VanAntwerp, director of retail services for Waterloo, Iowa-based VGM, says overall numbers may not indicate robust retail growth across the industry, but those individual companies adopting a retail component appear to be on the upswing,...
Tim VanAntwerp: Mine data for retail opportunities
March 17, 2023Liz Beaulieu, Editor
WATERLOO, Iowa – When you take a data-centric approach to retail, it’s a good fit for nearly every HME provider, says Tim VanAntwerp, who was recently named director of retail services for VGM & Associates.
“Retail was always something we did,” said VanAntwerp, a long-time HME provider, most recently of Van’s Medical Equipment. “But things really got interesting when we started looking at our rejections in Brightree and we looked at those as opportunities...
AZ MediQuip CEO: ‘Digitally, we’re behind – that's an opportunity’
January 20, 2023Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Lane Hamm has spent most of his career in retail, which he describes as a fast-paced and constantly changing environment, a valuable perspective he brings to his new role leading AZ-MediQuip.
“Consumer needs continue to evolve and change,” said Hamm, who recently became CEO of Scottsdale, Ariz.-based AZ MediQuip. “Certainly, what they are looking at, and how they get access to information and products – to me that’s a fun puzzle to...
Providers emphasize safe bets, flexibility
November 11, 2022Theresa Flaherty, Managing Editor
YARMOUTH, Maine – More than a year after supply chain issues upended normal ordering and inventory processes, things are slowly improving, say HME retailers.
“There are better lead times and some stuff is coming in quicker than expected, but it’s still crazy keeping track of inventory,” said Kevin Brown, one of the owners of at Hermitage, Tenn.-based All Star Medical. “We do carry more in the back on-hand than we used to just because (that’s safer).”
The...
SpinLife provides ‘quick access’ with physical location
October 10, 2022HME News Staff
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. - SpinLife, a division of Numotion, has opened its first physical location in New Castle, Del.
“We are thrilled to open our first physical location in Delaware,” said Pattiann McAdams, SpinLife senior vice president and general manager. “SpinLife is committed to specializing in mobility equipment for both the aging and disabled populations, offering unique products in key categories, such as scooters, power and manual wheelchairs, lift chairs, beds, and...
Metro Medical updates website
February 28, 2022HME News Staff
BURNSVILLE, Minn. – Metro Medical, a medical equipment and supply retailer, has launched an updated website that simplifies the customer experience with easy navigation. The company’s new website features an extensive inventory of medical equipment and supplies, including mobility scooters, lift chairs, aids for daily living, wheelchairs, bath safety products, hospital beds, incontinence supplies and reachers. The website also features the services the company provides, including battery...
What is the ‘secret sauce’ of HME retail?
November 30, 2021HME News Staff
The state of retail sales in the HME industry can perhaps be best described this way: While retail is not new to the HME industry, retail-focused HME is something new and different.
That observation belongs to Fernando Elguea, business development manager for St. Petersburg, Fla.-based Rhythm Healthcare/Lifestyle Mobility Aids. As someone who has spent most of his career helping providers capitalize on the retail opportunities most companies miss, he is now helping the Rhythm commercial...