MIAMI—A federal jury has convicted two Florida doctors for their roles in a scheme to defraud Medicare by submitting over $31 million in claims for expensive durable medical equipment (DME) that Medicare beneficiaries did not need and that were procured through the payment of kickbacks, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
HomeCare News
BOSTON—CareAcademy, a leading care enablement platform for homecare and home health organizations,today announced that it has completed the strategic acquisition of assets from
WASHINGTON—U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA), chairman of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, and U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI-6) have introducing legislation to expand access to home- and community-based services (HCBS) for older adults, people with disabilities and injured workers, while increasing pay and improving benefits for in-home caregivers.
IRVINE, California—Comfort Keepers, a market-leading provider of homecare for seniors and adults who need assistance, has appointed Ramzi Abdine its chief executive officer for North America, replacing Carl McManus, effective immediately.
CHICAGO—PurposeCare, a leading provider of coordinated home care and home health services in the Midwest, has announced Rob Barrow as chief operating officer.
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.
Medicare beneficiaries of color used more home health services than white beneficiaries—and were also more likely to rely on unpaid caregivers for their home health care than white beneficiaries, according to a new report from the Commonwealth Fund.
NORTHFIELD, Illinois and SILICON SLOPES, Utah—Medline and CareXM today announced an exclusive marketing and distribution agreement to serve the home health and hospice industry. The partnership between the two companies is focused on leveraging technology to relieve challenges of patient triage to help reduce staff burnout.
LIVINGSTON, Tennessee—Encore Healthcare has named Sarah Brundidge director of quality and innovation. Brundidge holds a master’s degree in respiratory from Rush University and bachelor’s degree in English literature. She brings vast experience in respiratory care, including in hospitals, home medical equipment, themedical device industry and remote patient monitoring.
LAS VEGAS—Nobi, a provider of aging technology solutions, has introduced a smart lamp powered by artificial intelligence (AI) that focuses on fall detection and prevention for older adults. The company, which presented the lamp at CES (formerly the Consumer Electronics Show), said the device can help protect against injury and death while also reducing health care costs due to falls.
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.
NEW YORK—A man has pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud in connection with a Medicare durable medical equipment (DME) fraud scheme, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Matthew Taylor Witkowski is scheduled to be sentenced on April 20, 2023 and could serve up to 10 years.
CHARLOTTE, North Carolina—Carefluent, a startup in-home care provider, has been selected as a participant in the 2023 Techstars Future of Longevity Accelerator. The accelerator is run in partnership with Pivotal Ventures, an investment and incubation company created by Melinda French Gates. The 13-week startup accelerator program is aimed at addressing the unmet needs of older adults and their caregivers.
REXBURG, Idaho—Home Care Pulse (HCP), a provider of experience management, benchmarking, training and reputation management, announced it has acquired Activated Insights and Pinnacle
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DALLAS—January 19, 2023 – A recent survey of thousands of home-based care providers yielded key insights into strategies and opportunities for organizations in the care at home industry. WASHINGTON—The four national hospice provider organizations—LeadingAge, the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC), the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) and the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI)— WASHINGTON—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has added 10 HCPCS codes to the list of those that require face-to-face encounter and a written order, bringing the total up to 63 codes, according to VGM Government Relations. The new codes, all for back, knee and ankle or foot braces, are:
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