HME Insights

ARLINGTON, Virginia—The American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) announced it will be holding webinars on the topics of home medical equipment (HME), e-prescribing strategies, durable medical equipment (DME) suppliers and billing in October. The details of the webinars are listed below.

DALLAS—CCS Medical, a clinical solutions and home-delivered medical supplies provider, announced new research results which found patients living with diabetes who use a continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) device stay on therapy longer and have a lower total cost of care when they receive their supplies through a medical benefit. 

WASHINGTON—The American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) released a comprehensive survey report detailing the impact of Medicare reimbursement cuts for home medical equipment (HME) suppliers that took effect on Jan. 1, 2024.

The American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) reported that UnitedHealthcare (UHC) recently notified suppliers of its plans to delay implementation of substantially revised HME order and fulfillment processes for DME for members of their Medicare Advantage (MA) plans who are enrolled in HMO and PPO products in North Carolina and Georgia. The implementation date is being moved back one month, from August 1 to September 1.

WASHINGTON—In early July, the American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) launched a nationwide survey on the impact of the expired Medicare fee-for-service 75/25 blended rate for non-bid/non-rural areas on the HME community and Medicare patients’ access to medically necessary equipment.

ASHEVILLE, North Carolina—Aeroflow Health, a nationwide provider of durable medical equipment (DME), celebrated the passage of 

RALEIGH, N.C.—State and national durable medical equipment (DME) advocates have helped secure a $3.2 million increase for HME in North Carolina, the American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) announced. 

AAHomecare credited the Atlantic Coast Medical Equipment Services Association (ACMESA) and strong relationships developed with North Carolina Medicaid officials and members of the state legislature for making the win possible.  

ATLANTA—The American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) and the Georgia Association of Medical Equipment Suppliers (GAMES) recently secured a rate floor for durable medical equipment (DME) using regulatory authority, AAHomecare announced. Laura Williard, vice president of payer relations for AAHomecare and state legislative chair for GAMES, worked closely with Peachtree Government Relations and helped organize two lobby days in the state to educate government officials on reimbursemen

WASHINGTON—The American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) and VGM are partnering on a new virtual advocacy event to bolster awareness and support for active Medicare reimbursement legislation as Congress enters final legislative weeks of the year. The Virtual Hill Day, set for Nov. 13, will reinforce the virtual advocacy effort from just a few weeks ago with a focus on reaching targeted members on committees of jurisdiction for federal healthcare finance issues. 

PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania—The University of Pittsburgh Rehabilitation Science and Technology Department has received a five-year grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research to support clinicians with post-doctoral fellowships to advance their careers in assistive technology practice, research and policy.

WATERLOO, Iowa—The future of the home medical equipment (HME) industry looks bright—but that doesn’t mean it’s without challenges, experts said as they gathered in Iowa for the Heartland Conference.

AAHomecare has opened its strategic priorities survey and seeks from input all areas of the home medical equipment sector (HME). The survey is designed to capture perspectives from HME suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, service providers to the HME industry and HME association executives. It will remain open through May 12.

Nearly every U.S. hospital and physician entity is more likely to refer patients to a post-acute care (PAC) provider that can support electronic data exchange, according to the latest leading independent survey on interoperability, commissioned by Brightree and MatrixCare, wholly owned subsidiaries of ResMed.

DALLAS—Securing better reimbursement rates and moving to new technologies like eprescribing are the top priorities for home medical equipment (HME)advocates in 2023, industry leaders said March 30 at Medtrade, the country’s largest HME conference and tradeshow.

MARIETTA, Georgia—SageHome Inc., the aging-in-place specialist, announced it has expanded to four new states in partnership with Kohler Co. The expansion, covering Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi, completes a year of achievements for the company and will form the springboard for SageHome's growth and expansion plans in 2023, the company said. 

WATERLOO, Iowa— VGM and Associates has released its first playbook of the year, “VGM Playbook: Forecasting 2023.”
 

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pennsylvania—ECRI, a nonprofit organization focused on technology evaluation and safety in health care, said that the nation's most pressing health technology safety issue for 2023 is gaps with recalls of home medical equipment (HME).

"Recall notices for home-use products often do not reach users, placing patients at serious risk of harm," the organization said in its new report, "Top 10 Health Technology Hazards."

OAKLAND, California—Rx Redefined, a tech-enabled provider of medical supply services for group practices, announced it has raised $8 million in Series A funding. The platform allows physicians to directly order and fulfill the supplies they believe are in the patient's best interest, thereby reducing handoffs and improving the patient experience.

WASHINGTON (December 20, 2022)—Most of the providers who were enrolled in Medicare under COVID-19-related waivers and then had their enrollments revoked were durable medical equipment, prosthetics and orthotics (DMEPOS) suppliers, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).