Medtrade Spring organizers said last week attendance at the Las Vegas expo revealed "home medical equipment providers across the country are dedicated to finding creative solutions that enhance the lives of their patients and the success of their businesses." Some 4,600 HME stakeholders — 3,000 of them providers — gathered for the mid-year event, held March 24-26. "Medtrade Spring 2009 attendance was up 12 percent from last year," said Kevin Gaffney, show director. "Despite industry and economic conditions, both attendees and exhibitors continue to see the value in face-to-face client interaction and education."
Gaffney said as the producer of the Medtrade shows, Nielsen Business Media "is significantly committed to the industry. With the legislative and regulatory issues and the economy and all of the things that could fracture the industry, it's more important now than ever to bring the industry together in a central location."
Nielsen and AAHomecare recently agreed to a 15-year contract under which Nielsen will provide increased financial support to the association. "We want the industry to succeed and be healthy," said Gaffney. "We will do everything that we can to make that happen."