Tag: Diabetes

YARMOUTH, Maine – Respondents to a recent HME Newspoll aren’t quite sure what to make of the weight loss drug craze and whether or not it will impact demand for certain HME.  Nearly 40% of respondents say the drugs, which are known as GLP-1s and which include brand names like Ozempic and Wegovy, could reduce demand for CPAP devices, as obesity is among the most important risk factors for sleep apnea.  “Over time, I think this will have a huge impact on PAP devices...

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa. – AdaptHealth underestimated the size and complexity of ramping up its Humana contract, resulting in a $10 million miss against expectations, company execs said on a call to discuss third quarter earnings.  “Onboarding members is taking longer than we had anticipated, resulting in a reduction to our expected revenues from Humana,” said Richard Barasch, chairman and interim CEO. “Nevertheless, we remain confident that this agreement will achieve...

WASHINGTON – CMS recently published a change request directing the DME MACs to allow 90-day billing for continuous glucose monitor supplies – a big win for all diabetes stakeholders.  Currently, while providers are shipping 90 days' worth of CGM supplies, they must bill for them monthly, causing “tremendous confusion” among providers and beneficiaries, says Linda Langiotti, senior vice president of strategic channels for CCS Medical, and chairwoman of the AAHomecare...

RICHMOND, Va. – Owens & Minor officials are excited about the future of the Patient Direct segment after posting double-digit growth for the diabetes and sleep categories in the third quarter.  The segment, which reported revenue of $648 million in the quarter, now makes up about 25% of overall revenue.  “(Diabetes and sleep) continue to be extremely strong for us,” said Edward Pesicka, president and CEO, during a recent earnings call. “And you think about...

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa. – A class action lawsuit has been filed against AdaptHealth alleging the company misrepresented the strength of its diabetes business, causing investors to pay inflated prices for shares in the company.  The lawsuit, filed Oct. 24 in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania by the Allegheny County Employees Retirement System, alleges that between Aug. 4, 2020, and Feb. 27, 2023, AdaptHealth and certain senior executives overcharged...

ACTON, Mass. – Insulet has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its Omnipod 5 App for iPhone, making Insulet the first company to offer a tubeless automated insulin delivery (AID) system with full control from a compatible Android and iOS smartphone. "Today, we celebrate this significant milestone in our ongoing effort to provide people with diabetes solutions that improve their lives and help them think less about diabetes," said Eric Benjamin, executive...

WASHINGTON – CMS recently clarified who can conduct follow-up visits every six months for continuous glucose monitors.  While some states have begun to pass laws that increase the role of pharmacists in prescribing and treating patients, Medicare does not recognize them as a treating practitioner, so “a pharmacist entry” in the patient’s record would not meet coverage requirements in the local coverage determination for CGMs.  “Some of the DME community...

ABBOTT PARK, Ill., and NEW YORK – Abbott and WeightWatchers have announced the availability of a connected app to help people living with diabetes understand how food and activity impact their glucose levels. WW members who follow the WW Diabetes-Tailored Plan can now access their glucose data from Abbott’s FreeStyle Libre 2, a continuous glucose monitoring system, within their WW app. "Clinical data shows that healthy weight loss leads to a reduction of average glucose, which is important...

PARSIPPANY, N.J. – Ascensia Diabetes Care, owner of the CONTOUR blood glucose monitoring system portfolio and exclusive distributor of the Eversense continuous glucose monitoring system, has opened submissions for its art and photo competition in support of World Diabetes Day 2023. The theme of this year’s competition is “This is Diabetes, This is Real,” aiming to capture the challenges, successes and day-to-day realities of people living with diabetes. “For our 2023...

ABBOTT PARK, Ill. and MILPITAS, Calif. – Abbott will acquire Bigfoot Biomedical, a developer of smart insulin management systems.  Abbott  and  Bigfoot have worked together on connected diabetes solutions since 2017.  Bigfoot developed Bigfoot Unity, a smart insulin management system that works exclusively with Abbott's FreeStyle Libre technology and includes a customer smartphone app connected to a cloud-based online portal used by health care providers to support...