Answering the Call

What a year this has been — and it’s only October. We’ve watched our troops pull out for war with Iraq, and then watched that war on television. Mysterious diseases like Norwalk (the virus that’s stalking cruise ships) and monkeypox (what the heck is that?!) continue to be worrisome, and medical professionals tell us to prepare for SARS The Sequel this winter.

A string of corporate financial scandals has littered the headlines. Even kitchen diva Martha Stewart has been charged with insider trading, not exactly “a good thing.” Our computers have been invaded by scourges like Blaster and SoBig, which were, in fact, so big that for a few days they threatened national business.

In August, we experienced a blackout that left 50 million people without electricity. In September, Hurricane Isabel caused serious flooding and death along the Eastern seaboard.

The year has been no less tumultuous for HME. Too many states considered Medicaid cuts to balance their budgets. The first HIPAA deadline kicked in last April, and the transactions and code sets rule is scheduled to take effect in a matter of days.

Congress began debate over Medicare reform, which, no matter how it turns out — if, in fact, it does — will have a profound impact on the way this industry conducts its business. Measures including competitive bidding and mandatory accreditation were still under discussion at press time. Last month, CMS lowered the boom on power wheelchair fraud in the wake of a massive Medicare billing scheme that came to light in Houston.

So what have home care providers been doing through this saga of national events and industry nail-biters? Just as we would expect, they have been going about the business of caring for their customers. They’ve delivered the equipment and services those customers need. They’ve carried heavy oxygen tanks up stairs and kept close watch over patients on ventilators and feeding pumps. During power outages, they’ve accomplished these tasks in the dark, in bad weather, by any means necessary.

Simply put, they have been helping. They have allowed seniors to remain independent and sick children to recover at home with their families. They have made difficult lives better. And they have labored with quiet determination, mostly without notice, behind the walls of the elderly and in the homes of the ill.

In times of emergency and those without, this industry’s providers answer the call. They do it with professionalism. They do it with care. And they do it every time — this year and every year, every single day.