Archive: November 2019

YARMOUTH, Maine - If you're an HME provider trying to appeal a denial by a managed care payer, it's probably not going very smoothly, reports consultant Wayne van Halem.“There's a process for appeals they have to follow that's outlined in the managed care manual and they're not doing that,” said van Halem, president of the van Halem Group.The process is similar to Medicare's: a number of levels of appeals, including redetermination, reconsideration and administrative law judge or ALJ.Instead...

WASHINGTON - An upcoming review of PMD repairs by the Office of Inspector General raises the stakes for providers who are already grappling with a requirement that doesn't always match every day realities. That requirement: Before the date of service of a repair, providers must ensure there's documentation from the past 12 months showing “continued need” for the wheelchair. If it's not already in the medical record, stakeholders say it can take days to get, if not weeks if the patient...

INDIANAPOLIS - Professional development isn't the only tool that employees need to succeed, says Rehab Medical President Kevin Gearheart.They also need the right technology.That's why Rehab Medical in October launched an updated version of its mobile customer relationship management (CRM) software solution.“This has been a game changer for us,” Gearheart said.The CRM solution allows Rehab Medical's sales force to speed up the process of providing complex power wheelchairs and improve...

WOODBRIDGE, Va. - With its new senior rehab consultant Melissa Freeman, ATF Medical now has 11 ATPs on staff.Freeman, an ATP and CEAS, brings skills in assistive communication to the company, which provides medical equipment and adaptive house solutions for the workers' compensation market.“I had a lot of clients who received, used and benefited from speech and language devices," she said. "They're utilized a lot more than they used to be as technology becomes more universal. Before, communication...

Despite consolidation rippling through the urologicals category, manufacturers see the market continuing to be a positive environment for HME providers. By adhering to solid financial practices, sharpening their knowledge and context of the field and working closely with their supply partners, providers should enjoy success in the market, vendors say.“I look to our providers in amazement as they manage so many different policies, allowables and amounts with insurance payers,” says John...

EXETER, Pa. - Pride Mobility Products is testing a new digital kiosk with about 50 HME providers as a way to help them educate and sell customers on their products.The kiosk will have information, photos and videos of everything from Pride's VivaLift line of electronic recliners to its Jazzy line of power wheelchairs.“We're moving more in a digital direction,” said Renae Storie, a senior director at Pride.Pride had a digital kiosk on hand at Medtrade in October. It has a steel frame that...

ATLANTA-While women's health products have always been a Medtrade mainstay, the emerging mom-and-baby market has received a lot more attention in recent years.In 2017, the Owlet Smart Sock 2, a device that tracks babies' heart rates and oxygen levels, won the Provider's Choice Gold Award; at this year's Medtrade Spring, a battery powered heating blanket took bronze.“Those two products, and more, have shown that HME providers can creatively tap into the mom and baby market,” said Kevin...

ROCK HILL, S.C. - McKesson recently hosted its fifth provider roundtable in Rock Hill, S.C., to discuss the importance of payer relations on the HME industry's future. “HME is a small percentage of what payers pay for, but it saves a lot of money in other areas of health care, because it's less expensive to have a patient home than in an acute care or long-term care facility,” said Ashley Latva, account manager, HME, North Carolina, McKesson. “So we want payers to see the value...

MCKINNEY, Texas - Soleo Health has been focused on growing organically, but it's now at a size where it makes sense to pursue tuck-in acquisitions, says CEO Drew Walk.Soleo made its first such buy in November when it acquired Dayton, Ohio-based Paragon Infusion Therapy, which has a presence in southeast Ohio and throughout Indiana and Kentucky.“We took a step back last summer to do a five-year strategic plan and feel the next level includes layering in some acquisitions, along with continued...

SAN DIEGO - ResMed last month announced a new agreement with one of the biggest names in health IT: Cerner. As part of the agreement, Cerner has designated ResMed's Brightree Home Health and Hospice platform as its preferred solution for its electronic health record. Perhaps more wide-reaching, Cerner has also agreed to connect other ResMed digital health platforms, including those that support its more than 10 million connectable sleep apnea and respiratory care devices, to its EHR and HealtheIntent...