News


Latest Stimulus Package Now Law

House passes and President signs into law $484 billion worth of funding that includes $75 Billion in relief for healthcare providers.

Quality Biomedical Opens 7th Service Center

New Fort Wayne, Ind. facility will repair respiratory equipment for OEMs and HME providers in the Midwest.

JTEK to Debut New Home Access Studio

Extra Photos — With an eye on upscale design, JTEK’s North Canton, Ohio location will provide immersive product displays such as full bathrooms, a bedroom and smart kitchen, while showing off larger items such as ramps, stairlifts, patient lifts and shower units.

VGM Takes 2020 Heartland Conference Virtual

Redubbed Heartland At Home, the move was made to address COVID-19 concerns. The event will run as a virtual conference from June 15 to July 10 and will be free to VGM members.

New Stimulus Bill Adds $75 Billion to COVID-19 Relief

The new legislative package also includes $310 billion in paycheck protection and $60 billion in Economic Injury Disaster Loan relief that HME providers can access.

CARES Act Attestation Portal Now Online

Providers receiving a share of the $30 billion COVID-19 relief fund must use the portal to declare they comply with the program’s terms and conditions within 30 days of receiving the relief.

AAHomecare Launches HME Supply Chain Survey

The effort aims to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on HME providers’ supply chain in order to help build the case to delay competitive bidding implementation by one year. The deadline to take the survey is April 21.

National Mail-Order: Diabetes Benefit Use Fell, Retail Sales Grew

A new Medicare Payment Advisory Commission study of CMS’s national mail-order program for diabetic supplies showed a drop in benefit use and an increase in retail sales between 2010 and 2017, but did not see an increase in adverse health outcomes.

Three New England Providers Merge to Form Spiro Health

Under the Spiro Health brand, America’s HealthCare at Home, Cape Medical Supply and Health Complex Medical will leverage technology to provide seamless services to sleep and respiratory patients across seven New England states. That said, Spiro Health has an eye on caring for a much larger market.

HHS Begins Distributing Billions of Coronavirus Relief Funds to Healthcare Providers, HME Suppliers

On Friday, the department announced the disbursement of $30 billion to providers facing economic hurdles due to the pandemic. $70 billion remain in the CARES Act fund.



Itamar Medical and Sleep Data Team Up For Home Sleep Apnea Testing and Treatment

The integration, targeting cardiologists, features the BetterNight virtual care platform and Itamar Medical’s WatchPAT diagnostic services.

CMS Removes Non-Invasive Ventilators From Round 2021

Attributing the decision to COVID-19 as well as other factors, NIVs will not be part of Round 2021, and any DMEPOS supplier can provide the devices, as well as any other ventilator types covered by Medicare.

Three Major Private Payers Issue COVID-19 Policy Changes

UnitedHealthCare, Humana and Anthem issue HME-related guidance in response the Coronavirus pandemic. AAHomecare reports it is working with additional payers.

AAHomecare to Providers: Use Sound Judgement

Industry association reminds providers that CMS’s relaxed coverage requirements are to help fight COVID-19 and to not only judiciously apply the new guidelines but help police any abuse.

CMS Expands Use of Multi-Function Ventilators

New MLN Matters article stipulates that beneficiaries must now only meet typical coverage for a ventilator.

President Moves to Ramp Up Ventilator Production

President Trump uses Defense Production Act to order Health and Human Services and Department of Homeland Security to facilitate increased ventilator production by six manufacturers.

caire covid response

CAIRE Increases Production of Oxygen Equipment To Meet Demands of Coronavirus Pandemic

The oxygen manufacturer with facilities in China, Europe and the U.S. has also implemented several measures to protect employees, including sanitizing production lines, quarantining supplies and social distancing in common areas.

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New PlayMaker Health Report Details Hospice and Home Health Market Trends

The Q3 2019 report finds that the median length of stay for hospice patients is 16 days, while 60 percent of home health referrals come from community sources.

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WellSky Launches Care Coordination Platform in Response to Coronavirus Crisis

The platform aims to make it easier for care managers to administer interventions, connect patients to local providers and relieve hospitals suffering from bed shortages due to COVID-19.

CMS IFR Streamlines DMEPOS Regulations

In response to COVID-19, CMS’s new Interim Final Rule incorporates several relief provisions that industry advocates requested to help providers better care for patients during the pandemic, but does not include a Round 2021 delay.

Stimulus Package Signed Into Law

The House passed the stimulus package, which includes various HME provisions including the extension of the 50/50 blended rate for HME in rural and non-contiguous, non-bid areas, and Pres. Trump signed the legislation into law.

Senate Upvotes Stimulus Package — With HME Provisions

Bill includes an extension of the 50/50 blended rate for HME in rural and non-contiguous, non-bid areas, and temporarily eliminates the 2 percent Medicare sequester reduction, and eliminates some telehealth requirements.

HME Stakeholders Back Letter to Commercial Payers Concerning COVID-19

At least 150 providers sign letter that outlines 18 policy recommendations to help HME suppliers better serve patients and ease burdens on hospitals during the COVD-19 pandemic.

Medtrade Calls For Presentation Proposals Ahead of Planned November Conference

HME experts and speakers can submit presentations, particularly for town hall/panel-style sessions, through May 1.

Glooko Offers Free Remote Diabetes Care During COVID-19

To cut down on risk of in-person visits, Glooko is providing its remote-care solution that provides live patient-to-clinician connectivity at no charge.

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