WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 23, 2021)—Pulse oximeters, which measure blood oxygen levels, have been widely used during the COVID-19 public health emergency to track a patient’s oxygen saturation, but they may not always be accurate, according to new guidance recently released by the Food and Drug Administration.

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. (February 23, 2021)—We all know that life has not been the same since the start of the pandemic. 3B Medical wants to make a difference and impact the lives of patients in most need. Starting this month 3B Medical will be sponsoring a contest to give away the newest portable oxygen concentrator on the market, the Aer X. If you know of a deserving patient that is struggling, has a valid oxygen prescription and would be ambulatory if they had a POC, tell us their story.

MADISON, Wis. (February 23, 2021)—Husch Blackwell’s Hospice & Palliative Care team secured a $44 million reduction of an alleged overpayment for a hospice client involved in an audit of Medicare payments. The auditor, a contractor hired by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Service (CMS) to audit hospices, had used statistical extrapolation to find this extraordinary overpayment amount.

FRESNO, Calif. (February 23, 2021)—Introducing the brand new QUICKIE Q300 M Mini, Sunrise Medical’s narrowest power wheelchair to complement the QUICKIE power portfolio. The ultra-narrow base will go where other power chairs can’t. Whether it’s a narrow doorway, complicated living room or crowded restaurant, the Q300 M Mini will easily maneuver where you want to go.

CHICAGO (February 23, 2021)—Central HealthCare Group, LLC, announced that it has advised the owner of OxygenWorks on the divestiture of the business. OxygenWorks is a privately-owned, multi-generational company, headquartered in Merion Station, Pennsylvania, providing a broad spectrum of respiratory equipment and supplies to patients in Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey.

WATERLOO, Iowa (February 23, 2021)—VGM Wound Care, a division of VGM & Associates, has released its Wound Care Program Guide.

This comprehensive resource walks VGM members through deciding whether or not a wound care program is right for their business, as well as starting and developing a wound care program. It also provides additional resources and contacts.

AUSTIN, Texas (February 19, 2021)—The American Association of HomeCare (AAHomecare) has asked the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to implement processes to ensure that medically fragile children covered under the state’s Star Kids program can continue to be served by their current durable medical equipment (DME) supplier if a change in providers is deemed to potentially subject the patient to unnecessary risk.

LIVINGSTON, Tenn. (February 19, 2021)— Encore Healthcare announced Katie Pennington, RRT as director of clinical operations for the company. Pennington has served as Encore's clinical implementation specialist over the last year and has established an outstanding reputation with Encore customers for clinical and operational excellence.

ALBANY, New York (February 18, 2021)--At a time when homecare providers face a 50% workforce recruitment-and-retention funding cut and other reductions in New York’s state budget, the Home Care Association of New York State (HCA) has issued a report showing the devastating impact of COVID-19 on homecare operations and workforce amid a rising demand for services and escalating new costs for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other needs.

Cars are getting safer: there are backup cameras, lane departure warnings, and sensors that apply the brakes when the sense an obstruction. But for all the technology being poured into cars, power wheelchair users lacked the same protection—relying on just a seatbelt in many cases.