WASHINGTON, D.C. (December 8, 2015)—House legislation to address CMS’ plans to apply bidding-derived pricing outside of competitive bidding areas (starting January 1, 2016) has been introduced today by Reps. Tom Price (R-Ga.) and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) The new bill, HR 4185, the Protecting Access through Competitive-pricing Transition (PACT) Act, includes provisions that:

WESTLAKE, OHIO (December 3, 2015)—OxyGo, a leading supplier of portable oxygen concentrators (POC’s), is now offering for purchase a five-year warranty plan that’s one of the longest available in the industry. Traditional POC manufacturers offer only a one, two, or three- year limited warranty.

“This is extremely important news for POC providers,” said Jon Schultz, OxyGo director of sales.

ROME, New York (December 3, 2015) – Nunn’s Home Medical Equipment announced today that they will open a second location after 73 years of doing business solely based in Rome, NY on November 30, 2015. The second location was secured through the acquisition of Rothschild’s Home Health Care of Syracuse, NY with its 6,000 square foot location at 817 E. Genesee St, Syracuse, NY.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (December 2, 2015)—In 2014, per-capita health care spending grew by 4.5 percent and overall health spending grew by 5.3 percent, a study by the Office of the Actuary at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) published today as a Web First by Health Affairs. Those rates are below most years prior to passage of the Affordable Care Act.

CINCINNATI, Ohio (December 3, 2015 )—FirstLight HomeCare, an award-winning non-medical home care franchise business, was recently chosen as a Top 100 Franchise Business for Veterans by Franchise Business Review magazine. This is the fifth year the publication has named the top franchise brands that offer the best entrepreneurial opportunities for U.S. military veterans.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (November 19, 2015)—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a new report today showing that consumers have received more than $2.4 billion premium rebates since 2011 because the Affordable Care Act requires that health insurance companies spend at least 80 percent of premium dollars on health care. For 2014 alone, over 5.5 million consumers received nearly $470 million in rebates, for an average of $129 per family.

ATLANTA (November 23, 2015)—The Best Booth Award at last month’s Medtrade in Altanta went to Mediware Information Systems. Kolby Wegener, marketing specialist, Mediware Home Care Solutions Division, explained that the company “wanted to go with a new booth design concept this year to incorporate our new Mediware branding, our new CareTend product, and our forward thinking vision.”

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (November 20, 2015)—Statistics show Alabama ranks among the top 10 states in the nation in terms of fire deaths and injuries. Seven times a day, someone dies in a home fire. The Red Cross Home Fire Preparedness Campaign is happening all over the country and involves Red Cross workers joining with local fire departments and community groups to visit neighborhoods at high risk for fires.