(June 13, 2019)—Minnesota HME leaders thwarted a plan to source incontinence products under Medicaid through a single distributor, with all providers billing for cost+20% for items purchased through that supplier.
HomeCare News
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (June 12, 2019)—Synzi, a virtual care company, has announced that Imperial Home Health (Imperial), a Medicare-certified home health care agency, has selected its virtual care communication platform to pioneer the delivery of better patient management, engagement and care in southern California.
NETANYA, Israel (June 12, 2019)—Eitan Group, a provider of advanced infusion therapy solutions across the care continuum, announced the appointment of Chris Lowery to its board of directors.
DALLAS (June 11, 2019)—Homecare Homebase (HCHB) a provider of mobile home health and hospice software has announced a new revenue cycle management (RCM) service at the company’s annual Users Conference this week in Dallas.
TORONTO (June 11, 2019)—Mavencare, a homecare technology company, announced its partnership with The Salvation Army Toronto Grace Health Centre, a 119-bed hospital located in the heart of downtown Toronto.
WOODSTOCK, Ga. (June 11, 2019)—NeoMed is excited to unveil NeoConnect at Home, a reusable portfolio of ENFit syringes that do not require a physician’s prescription. As an ENFit solution provider, NeoMed is dedicated to making it easier than ever for home patients to access the ENFit syringes they need.
NETANYA, Israel (June 11, 2019) – Eitan Group, a provider of advanced infusion therapy solutions across the care continuum, announced the opening of a new office in Southern California. The new U.S. headquarters will be based in Aliso Viejo and will be led by Eitan Group North America CEO Roger Massengale to support purchasing, training and service-related needs.
DALLAS (June 10, 2019)—Home health care provider, Axxess has released Axxess Hospice, a software solution to address the unique needs of hospice providers. Axxess Hospice was custom-built by hospice professionals with decades of industry experience to offer unique and intuitive capabilities that help hospice professionals more easily deliver the highest quality compassionate care.
Birmingham, Alabama (June 7, 2019)—About a third of providers don't expect the Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM) to change their therapy utilization, according to a survey conducted by the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) recently concluded a survey of the home health industry on the subject; another quarter of respondents to the survey said they expect a decrease of 10% or more.
By Susan Jaffe
WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 7, 2019)—At least a quarter of a million Medicare beneficiaries may receive bills for as many as five months of premiums they thought they already paid.
But they shouldn’t toss the letter in the garbage. It’s not a scam or a mistake.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (June 7, 2019)—Seema Verma, the administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), released an update on the administration’s #PatientsOverPaperwork initiative, citing the need for competition in the industry. But some home medical equipment (HME) providers weren't convinced.
ST. PETERSBURG, Florida and ATLANTA, Georgia (June 5, 2019)—Technology company Synzi’s virtual care and patient engagement platform won the “Best Patient Relationship Management Solution” category in the 2019 MedTech Breakthrough awards.
Brightree’s Home Health and Hospice Electronic Medical Record (EMR) was also a winner, in the “Best Overall Health Administration Software” category.
*Updated June 7, 2019 with link to presentation.
NASHVILLE (June 5, 2019)—Some 130 providers from around the country gathered Wednesday in Nashville, Tennessee, for the Bid Smart 2019 Summit, sponsored by the VGM Group, AAHomecare, the Council for Quality Respiratory Care (CQRC), At Home Services and the Healthcare Nutrition Council. The interactive summit covered the details of Round 2021 and helped providers learn how to approach bidding fully informed.
WATERLOO, Iowa (June 4, 2019)–Patients and caregivers are seeing delays in receiving equipment and supplies, a ripple effect from Medicare policy, and increases in out-of-pocket expenses, according to an informal social media study conducted by People for Quality Care (PFQC), a division of VGM Group.
Respondents to the survey reported having to wait upwards of two weeks for equipment and supplies.
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (June 4, 2019)—Curtailing immigration to the United States threatens the availability and quality of care for elderly and disabled Americans, according to a new study published in the current issue of the journal Health Affairs.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (June 3, 2019)—Caresmartz, Inc., a homecare technology company, is now the official technology partner of FirstLight Home Care, a provider non-medical homecare.
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (June 3, 2019—Aeroflow Healthcare, a provider of durable medical equipment (DME), announced partnerships with PacificSource of Oregon and BCBS CareFirst. Partnering with these two insurance carriers expands Aeroflow’s presence and ability to serve new patients throughout the United States, providing durable medical equipment products and services to the individuals who need them most to maintain a high standard of life.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 31, 2019)—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will be hosting two Special Open Door Forums (ODF) on June 4 and June 12, 2019.
Prior Authorization
On June 4, CMS will host an ODF from 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm EDT on the implementation of prior authorization (PA) for pressure reducing support surfaces. This ODF is a follow-up from an announcement published in the Federal Register on April 22.
DALLAS (May 30, 2019)—KanTime announced its integration with FrontStream Payments, a veteran in providing reliable, integrated payment solutions for home health care franchises. FrontStream Payments simplifies payment acceptance by providing seamless, secure and compliant credit card processing. This new integration provides KanTime with an exciting feature that will allow agency billing staff to pay patient invoices by credit card.
LAS VEGAS (May 30, 2019)—Casamba, a provider of electronic medical record (EMR) solutions for outpatient therapy, home health agencies, skilled nursing facilities and contract therapy providers, announced the launch of Casamba Analytics.