WASHINGTON--As Hurricane Ike barreled toward Galveston, Texas, last week HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt announced the continued activation of more than 1,600 agency personnel to assist Gulf states in preparing for and responding to the massive storm, including support for medical evacuations that began late Wednesday.
HomeCare News
ARLINGTON, Va.--Exempting physicians and others who provide home medical equipment from accreditation could affect quality of care and eliminate a valuable tool to fight fraud and abuse, according to the American Association for Homecare.
Last week the organization came out in opposition to CMS’ decision to exempt certain DMEPOS providers from Medicare’s Sept. 30, 2009, mandatory accreditation deadline.
ATLANTA--Floridians are still cleaning up after Tropical Storm Fay. As of Friday, 700,000 Louisianans were still without power after Hurricane Gustav, and the federal government had issued a temporary waiver of Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP requirements to ensure that affected beneficiaries will get the services and equipment they need.
WASHINGTON--On Aug. 31, HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt declared a public health emergency in response to Hurricane Gustav to ensure that individuals, including those enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP in Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi and Alabama continue to receive their health care items and services.
For the full text of the waiver, click here.
MINNEAPOLIS--Newly named vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin fanned a small flame of hope for support for children with disabilities during her acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention Wednesday night, but stakeholders burned by decades of broken promises are mostly taking a wait-and-see attitude.
BALTIMORE--“Hugs and kisses.” That is what a number of physicians and others sent CMS last week during a Sept. 3 Special Open Door Forum on exemptions to the accreditation requirement for DMEPOS providers.
“Consider yourself hugged and kissed,” one doctor told the agency's Sandra Bastinelli, as he celebrated the announcement that he would no longer be required to become accredited. The phrase quickly became the impromptu theme of the call.
ORLANDO, Fla.--Rotech Healthcare has paid $2 million to settle civil charges resulting from a whistleblower complaint that it engaged in fraudulent Medicare billing for durable medical equipment.
BALTIMORE--The results are in, and based on a survey of 35,866 health care providers, CMS has reported they are generally satisfied with the services provided by Medicare’s fee-for-service contractors.
BALTIMORE--On Wednesday, Sept. 10, beginning at 2 p.m. ET, CMS will conduct an Open Door Forum on the Special Needs Plan Chronic Condition Panel, which will determine the conditions that meet the definition of severe or disabling chronic conditions in accordance with the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act.
ATLANTA--While most home medical equipment providers have been consumed this year with such national issues as competitive bidding and accreditation, there have been plenty of problems percolating at the state level.
A HomeCare Monday poll of state associations shows providers grappling with everything from budget cuts and slow-as-molasses payments to sales tax on HME. Here is a roundup of issues from responding associations around the country:
WASHINGTON--Last week, the American Association for Homecare asked CMS to address providers’ concerns about the 36-month oxygen rental cap, which is scheduled to take effect in less than five months on Jan. 1.
ATLANTA--In the latest development on PAP testing and policy, last week the four DME MACs delayed the Sept. 1 implementation date of their recent local coverage determinations on positive airway pressure devices.
EXETER, Pa.--Pride Mobility Products Corp. said Friday that Dan Meuser, president of Pride USA, is departing the company to pursue a full-time career in public service, ending a 20-year career with Pride. Meuser has been on an extended leave of absence from the firm after losing his bid for the Republican nomination in Pennsylvania's 10th Congressional District in the state’s April primary.
BALTIMORE--The “drop dead” date for mandatory DMEPOS accreditation has been set for Sept. 30, 2009, but last week, CMS announced a Special Open Door Forum to address exemptions to the deadline as outlined in a new subparagraph of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act, or MIPPA.
ELYRIA, Ohio--It’s the home medical equipment industry’s age-old problem: Costs are going up, reimbursements are going down. Only this time the squeeze is so substantial that unless providers reshape their businesses, they may not be able to survive.
COLUMBUS, Ohio--Medicare competitive bidding is on hold nationally, but a similar Medicaid program called “value purchasing” is on the table in Ohio, and members of the Ohio Association of Medical Equipment Services are prepared for a fight.