WASHINGTON--On May 29, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary
Kathleen Sebelius announced the appointment of Cindy Mann, director
of the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families, as
director of the Center for Medicaid and State Operations, part of
the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
HomeCare News
BALTIMORE — In an email sent Friday morning, CMS announced the next steps in its implementation of the Round One rebid of competitive bidding, including the general timeline for opening the bid window in the fall of this year.
According to the notice, the rebid will occur in the following MSAs (the same as the first Round One with the exclusion of Puerto Rico):
ATLANTA — Cara Bachenheimer is swift to identify the top three issues for the home medical equipment industry: “Competitive bidding.”
BALTIMORE — CMS has finalized the agenda for the first meeting of its new Program Advisory and Oversight Committee, established to advise the agency on competitive bidding.
ARLINGTON, Va. — On Tuesday, the American Association for Homecare sent a letter to the Senate Finance Committee about the list of options for financing health reform through cuts in Medicare. The association message: Take HME off the list.
MARTINEZ, Ga. — Based on a new survey from CSI:HME, the Committee to Save Independent HME Suppliers, independent providers are more worried about competitive bidding than anything else, although repeal of the 36-month cap on home oxygen rental is a close second.
AMARILLO, Texas — In a special Q&A for HomeCare Monday, health care attorney Jeff Baird, chairman of the Health Care Group at Brown & Fortunato, addresses the purchase of leads.
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Two
O&P Bills in the House
SAN DIEGO — Oxygen systems manufacturer SeQual Technologies has appointed Adrian Knight director of sales, the Americas. Knight will be responsible for sales team leadership as well as general management responsibilities within North and South America.
LONGMONT, Colo. — Thomas Rossnagel has taken over the reins of Sunrise Medical-Mobility, the Longmont, Colo.-based company announced.
Rossnagel, most recently senior vice president and managing director of Sunrise Europe, succeeds Michael N. Cannizzaro, who will continue as chairman of the company's board of directors. The new president and CEO said he was “thrilled” with the new position.
HME providers who choose not to become accredited at this time need to submit an amended CMS-855S application that reflects their voluntary termination, CMS announced last week. That will prevent the provider from being revoked and subsequently barred from the Medicare program, the agency said. For pharmacies that choose not to become accredited but wish to remain a DMEPOS provider for drugs and biologicals only, an amended CMS 855S must be completed.
Changes in Medicare policy for power and manual mobility, seating and positioning and repair services have catapulted providers into a state of confusion, and at times, into financial loss. Learn how to cope at AAHomecare's Mobility Conference June 18.
VGM members are headed to the Heartland next week for the buying group's annual Heartland Conference, June 8-10 in Waterloo, Iowa. Learn what's new in the industry from health care experts, earn up to 17 contact hours for CEUs in eight job-specific education tracks and network with other members, presenters and vendors. For information, visit www.vgm.com.
National Government Services, the Jurisdiction B DME MAC, reminded providers last week that it is continuing a prepayment targeted medical review for glucose testing supplies billed with the KS modifier (non-insulin treated beneficiaries).
In recognition of its "outstanding and innovative in-home service to children with special needs," St. Paul, Minn.-based Pediatric Home Service has been selected as the 2009 Organization of the Year by the Minnesota Chapter of the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners.
CMS' Special Edition MLN Matters article SE0832- Revised, called "The ICD-10 CM/PCS-The Next Generation of Coding," outlines general information for providers on the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Edition (ICD-10) classification system. Compared to the current ICD-9 system, ICD-10 offers more detailed information in order to capture advancements in clinical medicine, the agency said.
The MED Group, Lubbock, Texas, and Phoenix-based Healthcare Networks of America have announced an agreement that allows MED members to enroll in HNA's panel of accredited DME providers. HNA said expansion of its panel, previously comprised only of physicians, is an important step in growing its network. MED will also serve as HNA’s credentialing and compliance manager for those members who enroll.
Dynamic Seminars & Consulting, led by popular HomeCare columnist Louis Feuer, is moving. As of June 12, the company's new location will be: 2955 NW 126 Ave., #307, Pembroke Pines, FL 33323. Phone: 954/838-7504.
Average medical spending for a typical American family increased 7.4 percent between 2008 and 2009, according to a Milliman Inc. report. Total medical costs in 2009 for a typical family of four will be $16,771, compared with $15,609 in 2008, the resport said. While the percentage of the cost increase declined for the third straight year, the total dollar increase was the highest since 2006, the study found.
WASHINGTON--Last week Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., introduced
the Medicare O&P Improvements Act of 2009 (H.R. 2479). The
legislation would assure licensure compliance, accreditation and
qualifications of orthotic and prosthetic providers who treat
Medicare patients.