SANTA MONICA, Calif. — Creating an exclusive health identification number for every American would reduce medical errors, speed the use of electronic medical records, increase overall efficiency and help protect patient privacy, according to a new RAND Corp. study.
HomeCare News
WATERLOO, Iowa — The VGM Group is cranking up a series of educational conferences on national competitive bidding for 2009.
ELYRIA, Ohio — Invacare has posted strong third-quarter financial results, with a 9.3 percent increase in organic sales and a 40 percent improvement in adjusted earnings before taxes, the company reported Thursday.
POWAY, Calif.--ResMed will debut its new Swift LT for Her, a mask specially designed for women, at Medtrade this week.
LAKE FOREST, Calif. — Stockholders of Apria Healthcare Group voted to approve the giant provider's merger with Sky Acquisition, a wholly-owned subsidiary of an affiliate of The Blackstone Group, in a special meeting earlier this month.
The deal is expected to be completed before year-end.
DUBLIN, Ohio — Cardinal Health has announced it will spin off its clinical and medical products businesses as a separate company based in San Diego.
BILLINGS, Mont. — In news from Computers Unlimited, the company recently announced it has partnered with ARTSCO, Element Payment Services and A/R Allegiance Group.
BOULDER, Colo. — Covidien has launched the Sandman Alliance, a new patient compliance program that provides education, support and encouragement to OSA patients through personal coaching. The program links a sleep counselor with each patient to document progress and track the patient's therapy using a Web interface, which also allows the patient's sleep physician to log in and monitor the patient's performance.
BATESVILLE, Ind. — Hill-Rom has announced its acquisition of Swedish lift manufacturer Liko for $183 million.
ATLANTA — Linde North America has acquired Respiratory Support Services, Livingston, Tenn., which delivers post-acute respiratory care in a variety of settings, including patient homes.
"Adding RSS' advanced patient care capabilities enables Linde to offer a more complete product and service line in the U.S.," said Mike Walsh, president of LifeGas, the medical division of Linde North America.
CARTHAGE, Ill. — Sherrick Drug & Medical has announced the sale of its pharmacy and durable medical equipment to Wear Drug. After the deal is finalized in early November, Wear will merge the two pharmacies to create a larger pharmacy in its County Market store, Wear's location since 2006. The DME portion of the Sherrick business will stay in its present location but will be renamed MORE (Mobility Oxygen & Rehabilitation Equipment) Medical.
GF Health Products, Atlanta, has appointed James Hourigan as its new COO. Hourigan, who was most recently the COO for Inviro Medical, a manufacturer of medical safety devices, will be responsible for the company's day-to-day operations. According to Graham-Field CEO Bea Scherer, "Jim brings to Graham-Field a tremendous amount of executive experience in global logistics, manufacturing, group purchasing and customer focused marketing ...
BALTIMORE--The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services warned policymakers late Friday that Medicaid spending is projected to grow much faster than the economy over the next 10 years. With expenditures headed toward $5 trillion over the decade, agency officials said, now is the time to rein in costs.
WASHINGTON--In its Work Plan for 2009, issued earlier this month, HHS' Office of Inspector General said it will take on a number of DME investigations.
ATLANTA--Accreditors who geared up for a flood of fall applications from home medical equipment providers are facing the same old same old, they said last week: a steady, but very slow, trickle.
That could mean major trouble for some providers later on, according to accrediting organizations.
HALIFAX, Va.--In a statement issued Friday, the National Association of Independent Medical Equipment Suppliers said it had written to CMS Acting Administrator Kerry Weems--again--about rule changes related to the 36-month oxygen rental cap. This time, the organization said, its letter asked for an immediate response.
PALO ALTO, Calif.--On Thursday, Hewlett Packard announced a licensing agreement that allows Home Dialysis Plus to use applications from HP’s inkjet printers in a new home dialysis device.
HD+ plans to use HP's patented technology to develop a portable system that allows patients to get the benefits of nocturnal dialysis in the home. The new machine should be available by the end of 2010, the manufacturer said.
ATLANTA--Last week various polls shifted up and down daily, but according to most there are still only a few points between presidential candidates Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama.
The results of HomeCare's September Web poll--which asked “Which presidential candidate's health plan would be best for the country?--reflect an even tighter race on this issue.
ATLANTA--One of the best reasons to attend Medtrade is to network with colleagues, exhibitors and industry consultants. So this year the show, Oct. 28-30 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, will enhance the experience with its first Oktoberfest Celebration.
BALTIMORE--On Oct. 6, CMS unveiled a host of “aggressive new steps” to prevent fraud and abuse, including the launch of a national recovery audit contractor (RAC) program.