CARY, North Carolina—The Accreditation Commission for Health Care, Inc. (ACHC) has launched two new specialty credentials: the distinction in age-friendly care for home health and hospice, and the distinction in outcomes for home health. The addition of these credentials aims to further ACHC’s commitment to set quality standards for home-based care services, the company said.
BRONX, New York—Essen Health Care has been selected by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to participate in the “Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience” (GUIDE) model, a new Medicare alternative payment model. This model is designed to enhance care coordination and provide support to people living with dementia and their caregivers.
WASHINGTON—LeadingAge, a nonprofit and mission-driven provider of aging services, announced David Gehm as the 2024 Award of Honor recipient. This accolade recognizes Gehm, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Wellspring Lutheran Services, for his leadership, commitment to community services and advancement of care quality for older adults.
TORONTO, Ontario—Therma Bright Inc., a developer and investment partner in proprietary diagnostic and medical device technologies, announced it's Venowave VW5 has received the permanent health care common procedure coding system (HCPCS) code from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).
In 2016, medical device giant Abbott issued a recall for its MitraClip cardiac device—“a Class I recall, the most serious type,” the FDA said.
“Use of this device may cause serious injuries or death,” an FDA notice about the recall said.
DUBLIN, Ohio—Cardinal Health reported its fourth quarter fiscal year 2024 (FY24) revenues of $59.9 billion, an increase of 12% from the prior year. GAAP operating earnings were $401 million and GAAP diluted earnings per share (EPS) were $0.96. Non-GAAP operating earnings increased 14% to $605 million, driven primarily by segment profit increases in global medical products and distribution (GMPD) and pharmaceutical and specialty solutions.
BOULDER, Colorado—nVoq Inc., a transformative technology and AI-enabled voice-to-text solutions company serving in-home health care agencies, announced its launch of the nVoq Mobile Voice for iOS. The application provides caregivers with a purpose-built solution to transform documentation, an essential part of clinical practice.
BISMARCK, North Dakota—The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $73,680 in overtime wages for 76 employees of Lasting Love Homecare, LLC.
ATLANTA—The van Halem Group announced the addition of Melissa Pederson and Dr. William Felix to its team of expert consultants. Wayne van Halem, president of The van Halem Group, said he is thrilled to welcome them both to the team.
“Their background, skills and expertise are perfectly aligned with the services we provide to our clients, and we are lucky to have them,” said van Halem.
PITTSBURGH—Clinical investigators from the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) and the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) recently reported that different types of mobility devices and certain characteristics of people with limited mobility are associated with reported falls, according to their study.
KANSAS CITY, Missouri—Serviam Care Network, through its Value-Based Care Alliance, has announced the addition of Bickford Senior Living to the Value-Based Care Alliance of Virginia, which introduces value-based care (VBC) health models to its Virginia communities. This collaboration aims to enhance the quality of care for senior residents while improving health outcomes and reducing costs.
CAMDEN, New Jersey—In a commitment to furthering its partnership with Cooper University Health Care and bolstering essential services for the Camden community, Subaru of America, Inc., has announced its continued support of $30,000 for durable medical equipment (DME) and transportation services to continue to fuel Cooper's mission.
CONCORD, Florida—A Florida man pleaded guilty in federal court for his role in a conspiracy to defraud Medicare of $39.5 million, announced U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young.
Christopher Spellman of Port Richey, Florida, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and was charged on July 17. U.S. District Court Judge Samantha Elliott scheduled sentencing for Nov. 21, 2024.
WASHINGTON—A new AARP study discovered four in five (78%) older adults who identify as LGBTQ+ are concerned with a lack of support from family and friends as they age. At the same time, nearly half (45%) of these adults are already living with a chronic condition and/or disability.
FRANKLIN, Tennessee—Kythera Labs, Inc. announced its certification as a Qualified Entity from the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS). The CMS Qualified Entity (QE) Program, also known as the Medicare Data Sharing for Performance Measurement Program, enables certified organizations to receive Medicare claims data under Parts A, B and D. Only 39 organizations are QEs and only 23, including Kythera, have access to nationwide data.
LOS ANGELES—The owner of a tattoo removal business in South Gate pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges for recruiting paraplegics in a health care fraud scheme that netted more than $1.7 million and for cheating on his taxes.
Joseph Tusia, 60, of Leominster, Massachusetts, pleaded guilty to a two-count information charging him with health care fraud and tax evasion.
COLUMBIA, South Carolina—Nearly 7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Association, and that number is expected to rise—a statistic that has gerontologist Macie Smith concerned about the ability of the medical community to provide comprehensive support for patients and their caregivers.
PHILADELPHIA—Enclara Pharmacia, a hospice-focused pharmacy services provider, announces the launch of a bidirectional medication interface with MatrixCare, an out-of-hospital health care technology solution.
JACKSONVILLE, Florida—NeuroX announced it has been selected by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to participate in a new Medicare alternative payment model designed to support people living with dementia and their caregivers.
ATLANTA—Trella Health, a provider of market intelligence and integrated customer relationship management (CRM) solutions to the post-acute care industry, released its 2024 edition of the Post-Acute Care Industry Trends Report.
Leveraging the most recent and complete data available from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, this report highlights trends, ongoing challenges and emerging opportunities shaping the post-acute care industry.
