Sponsors

		Free Subscription
		Subscribe to HomeCare Magazine Subscribe to HomeCare Monday Weekly eNewsletter

SPONSOR MESSAGE Computers Unlimited unveils a powerful new version of its TIMS software -- TIMS for Windows. The latest version of TIMS combines the ease and simplicity of Windows with the power of a relational database. This fully integrated software package is a HIPAA-enabled, business management system for HME providers. For more information, call (406) 255-9500 or visit us online at www.cu.net For more industry news, featured articles and highlights from our latest issue, please visit our website at www.homecaremag.com

Week of July 15, 2024

HEADLINE NEWS Graham to Push Competitive Bidding in the Senate, AAHomecare Assembles Opposition Coalition WASHINGTON--The U.S. Senate may decide the fate of competitive bidding for durable medical equipment as early as this week, yet DME advocates still are in the dark about the proposals currently on the table, according to the American Association for Homecare. At a press conference last week, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., said the Senate will begin debating a Medicare prescription drug benefit today, despite the fact that the Senate's Finance Committee has not yet produced a bill. If the Finance Committee does not offer a drug-benefit bill by this evening, Daschle may decide to allow lawmakers to attach the benefit as amendments to S.812, a generic-drug bill passed by the Finance Committee last week. Either way, Sen. Bob Graham, D-Fla., plans to make sure that Medicare legislation includes a provision for DME competitive bidding, according to AAHomecare's sources on Capitol Hill. Graham plans to offer a competitive bidding amendment to any Medicare bill that does not already include such a provision, AAHomecare reported. In light of this discovery, Tom Connaughton, AAHomecare's president, is urging all DME providers, association leaders and patient advocates to call their Senators immediately and express opposition to competitive bidding. Initially, Daschle indicated that the Senate would not try to debate provider issues--which include competitive bidding--during this session of Congress. But more recently, Daschle has reversed his course, Connaughton said. Consequently, "Our timeline is shortened considerably, and we face an urgent situation in the Senate," Connaughton said. DME advocates were disappointed earlier this month when the U.S. House of Representatives passed a Medicare reform bill, H.R.4954, which includes provisions for nationwide competitive bidding. To meet the challenges of the coming weeks and months, AAHomecare has assembled a coalition of 19 industry and consumer advocates whose goal is to fight the spread of competitive bidding, the association announced July 12. The Coalition for Access to Medical Services, or CAMSET, is dedicated to protecting patients' right to choose their Medicare service providers, AAHomecare said. "CAMSET is concerned that national competitive bidding will undermine quality of care, restrict patients' choice of service providers, stifle the development of new technology and drive small businesses out of operation," the association explained. Coalition members include AAHomecare, the American Association of People with Disabilities, the Advanced Medical Technology Association, the Coalition of Respiratory Care Manufacturers, the Coalition of Seating and Positioning Manufacturers, the Coalition of Wound Care Manufacturers, the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Health Task Force, the Diabetic Product Suppliers Coalition, the Health Industry Distributors Association, the Indiana Medical Device Manufacturers Council, the National Association for Home Care, the Home Medical Equipment Association of America, the Medical Device Manufacturers Association and the Paralyzed Veterans of America. More information about CAMSET is available at http://www.protectaccess.org or by sending an e-mail message to [email protected]. Albuterol Shortage Doesn't Exist, Manufacturers Say ORLANDO, Fla. and KENILWORTH, N.J.--Responding to what he called "misinformation" in the media, Bill Kennedy, chief executive officer of Nephron Pharmaceuticals, said there is no shortage of albuterol in the market. "We have millions of vials of albuterol in our warehouse ready to ship right now," he insisted. "It is sterile, preservative-free, and meets all Food and Drug Administration requirements." The news story that Kennedy refuted attributes the alleged albuterol shortage to the fact that Warrick--the nation's leading manufacturer of generic albuterol--is not able to comply with a recent FDA sterility requirement. But Ronald Asinari, a spokesman for Warrick's parent company, Kenilworth, N.J.-based Schering Plough, said the story simply is not true. "We have just distributed the 20-milliliter albuterol solution," Asinari told HomeCare. "The solution is now available to the trade." Asinari explained that Warrick has complied with the FDA sterility rule by outsourcing the production of its generic albuterol to a third-party sterile manufacturer. State Associations Closer to Defeating Medicaid Competitive Bidding ORLANDO, Fla., CARY, N.C. and DALLAS--Working vigilantly to defeat Medicaid competitive bidding proposals, three state durable medical equipment associations have achieved significant success during recent weeks. In Florida, where the state's Medicaid arm already has awarded competitive bidding contracts for oxygen services and hospital beds, DME advocates are optimistic that a judge's ruling could stop competitive bidding in its tracks. In a preliminary ruling issued on June 26, a state judge suggested that Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration had overstepped its bounds in implementing competitive bidding without prior approval from the federal government. At the final hearing in a case that the Florida Association of Medical Equipment Services brought against AHCA, the agency could not explain why it had failed to gain federal approval for a competitive bidding program that awards only one DME contract per district, the judge said. "The agency's institution of the subject project . . . without satisfying the federal certification requirements might be in direct conflict with federal law and hence invalid," the judge continued. "If this be the case, then testimony concerning the availability and quality of services under the instant competitive bidding arrangement will indeed be irrelevant." Despite these positive signs, the fate of Medicaid competitive bidding in Florida still is unclear, according to Joan Cross, president of FAMES. The judge will not issue a final decision until sometime next month, and AHCA seems committed to implementing the program. However, in a July 8 letter to Florida's Medicaid DME providers, AHCA admitted that several protests--filed by DME providers who did not win Medicaid contracts--could slow the implementation process. "In these seven areas [where providers are protesting contract awards], there will be no change in the method of operation until each protest is resolved," said Bob Sharpe, deputy secretary for AHCA's Medicaid program. "This probably means that contracts will begin at different times in different areas." In North Carolina, where state senators included Medicaid competitive bidding for DME in the 2002-03 budget, the state's DME association so far has lobbied successfully to keep competitive bidding provisions out of the state House's budget. "We were able to convince key appropriation committee members in the House that competitive bidding wasn't the best thing for North Carolina," said Clark Robichaux, vice president of the North Carolina Association for Medical Equipment Services. "We feel we've taken care of competitive bidding language in the [House's] budget bill." While NCAMES is "cautiously optimistic" that North Carolina's Medicaid arm will be forced to find other avenues--besides competitive bidding--to achieve budget savings, Robichaux says the association is not taking any chances. "We have submitted a proposal that would include a reduction in the fee schedule [for DME] to meet the immediate needs of the budget," Robichaux explained. "We also have given [the state's Medicaid agency] some recommendations on how to weed out non-serious providers." Two months ago, Texas became the third state to jump on the Medicaid competitive bidding bandwagon when it issued a draft "request for proposals" for Medicaid DME. However, after receiving comments on the draft RFP and meeting with representatives from the Dallas-based Medical Equipment Suppliers Association, Texas' Health and Human Services Commission decided to withdraw the proposal, according to the Texas HHSC Web site. "Public comments received by HHSC on the draft DME RFP raised sufficiently significant questions about whether the RFP would achieve the desired results that HHSC is withdrawing the draft RFP," the commission said. Nonetheless, "HHSC reserves the option to put forward another draft competitive pricing mechanism later this summer if it determines that such an approach is supported by the commission's further analysis. Any such draft will be subject to public comment," the commission added. Like NCAMES, MESA is working with Texas' Medicaid arm to determine other ways to cut costs. "All providers will feel some of the cuts," MESA wrote in a letter to Texas Medicaid providers last month. "It is imperative that the recommendations for those cuts come from us, not from someone who does not have hands-on experience with the beneficiaries." Beneficiary Advocate Sues HHS WASHINGTON--The New York-based Medicare Rights Center filed suit in federal court last week against the U.S. Health and Human Services Department for allegedly refusing to disclose information about a regulatory reform task force that HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson created in December 2001. Believing the committee was biased in favor of the health care industry, MRC in January requested information from HHS on how the agency chose committee members, according to the organization's complaint. "As currently constituted, [HHS' Advisory Committee on Regulatory Reform] largely comprises physicians and other health care providers, and their lawyers," MRC charged in its complaint. After receiving no response from HHS, Robert Hayes, MRC's president, in April wrote to Medicare's administrator, Tom Scully, asking for an explanation. Although Scully agreed that MRC deserved a response and said he would ask his general counsel to investigate the oversight, MRC still did not receive any information, the complaint alleged. Consequently, MRC sued HHS, saying the agency violated the Freedom of Information Act by not releasing the documents in question. In its complaint, MRC asked the court to order HHS to disclose the requested records, and order HHS to pay MRC's costs and attorneys fees. Medicare to DMERCS: Standardize LMRP Reconsideration Process BALTIMORE--Medicare's durable medical equipment regional carriers must establish a uniform process whereby DME providers can request revisions to local medical review policies, according to a July 10 transmittal from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Standardizing the informal processes that the carriers have used until now to reconsider LMRPs, the transmittal said that carriers must respond quickly to reconsideration requests, must be willing to reconsider the entire LMRP or any part of the LMRP, must provide information about the LMRP reconsideration process online, must reply to invalid requests within 30 days, and must reply to valid requests within 90 days. This transmittal will be available at http://www.hcfa.gov/pubforms/transmit/memos/comm_date_dsc.htm sometime during the next few weeks. CMS Awards $42M Fraud-Fighting Contract BALTIMORE and DALLAS--Taking steps to shift some of its fraud-control functions to "program safeguard contractors," the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services last month awarded a $42 million, five-year contract to Dallas-based TriCenturion, a joint venture between three Medicare Part A and Part B carriers. Under the terms of the contract, TriCenturion will be responsible for educating Medicare carriers about fraud detection, processing complaints and conducting case development, according to one of TriCenturion's owners, Dallas-based Trailblazer Health Enterprises. TriCenturion's other owners include Columbia, S.C.-based Palmetto GBA and Jacksonville, Fla.-based First Coast Service Options.

PROVIDER NEWS Rotech Uncovers Contractor Fraud ORLANDO, Fla.--An independent contractor hired by Rotech Healthcare fabricated documentation for nonexistent sales of bulk medical equipment to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, according to Rotech officials. However, the VA apparently was not fraudulently billed as a result and none of the fabricated sales to the VA were consummated. Rotech reported the falsified sales as approximately $30 million in revenue, most of which the company recorded in 2001. The company is reviewing another $6 million in unreserved receivables on VA non-bulk contracts and has brought the matter to the attention of government authorities. Additionally, Rotech has terminated the independent contractor in question, has retained a law firm and a government contracts consulting firm to conduct an internal investigation, and is working with its accounting firm to determine how to treat the recorded revenue. Gentiva Settles Age-Discrimination Suit MELVILLE, N.Y.--Gentiva Health Services last week reached a settlement agreement in a 4-year-old age-discrimination lawsuit. Terms of the settlement in the case of Fredrickson v. Olsten Health Services Corp. and Olsten Corporation were not disclosed. "I am pleased to advise that the terms of the settlement do not change the cash guidance previously provided," said Ron Malone, chairman and chief executive officer of Gentiva. "The settlement enables us to release the cash previously restricted in support of a supersedeas bond, and also to eliminate future litigation costs associated with this matter." Legal Consultant to Leave Home Care Industry WASHINGTON, D.C.--Michael DeCarlo has resigned his position as counsel for the law firm Dickstein Shapiro Morin & Oshinsky, and has accepted a position as director and counsel for policy development for the Health Insurance Association of America, beginning today. DeCarlo was a co-founder of Dickstein Shapiro's Health Law Services group, and prior to joining the firm, was Of Counsel to Parver & Associates, a health care law and consulting firm. From 1991 to 1996, DeCarlo served as director of regulatory affairs for NAMES, now the American Association for Homecare. He also has served as in-house attorney for the American Health Care Association and as research director for the Alabama Nursing Home Association. MANUFACTURER NEWS Cardinal Health Dispels Accounting Rumors DUBLIN, Ohio--Responding to "unusual" trading activities in its stock and to inquiries from its shareholders, Cardinal Health last week issued a statement dispelling any rumors of questionable accounting procedures related to its relationship with troubled accounting firm Arthur Andersen. "We find ourselves in an unprecedented time of suspicion and lack of trust in the capital markets," said Robert Walter, chairman and chief executive officer. "We understand investors' concerns about recent developments in the capital markets and we share those concerns. With respect to Cardinal Health, however, I can assure the investment community that any accounting concerns are unfounded. Cardinal Health continues to adhere to the same high standards of reporting as we have prided ourselves in ever since going public in 1983." Walter added that the company blamed an "erroneous" rumor about Cardinal Health's relationship with Arthur Andersen for noteworthy trading activity in Cardinal Health stock in early July. Walter did not clarify what the specific activity was. "Cardinal Health has not had any disagreements with our auditors regarding accounting principles or other elements of our audits," said Richard Miller, chief financial officer. "We maintain straightforward accounting practices, with over 97 percent of our revenues based on the delivery of tangible goods and transfer of title. The rumor in the market regarding our relationship with our auditor or any accounting improprieties is quite simply erroneous." Abbott Labs Reports Q2 Sales, Earnings ABBOTT PARK, Ill.--Abbott Laboratories has reported net earnings of $592 million, or 38 cents per share, for the second quarter of 2002, reflecting an 11.9 percent increase over earnings for the same quarter last year. Net sales for the second quarter increased 5.3 percent, from $4.1 million in 2001 to $4.3 million in 2002. Abbott's net earnings include one-time charges related to the acquisition of Biocompatibles' stent business and an alliance with Medtronic, as well as costs from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's consent decree regarding the company's diagnostics manufacturing operations, the company said. Puritan Bennett Expands Manufacturing Facility PLEASANTON, Calif.--Puritan Bennett, a division of Tyco Healthcare, has moved its Indianapolis manufacturing plant into a new, expanded facility. The new facility has more than 140,000 square feet of usable space, according to the company. "The additional space, combined with an improved layout, makes the new site more conducive to our current production methods," said Brad Hart, plant manager. The address for the new facility is 2800 Airwest Boulevard, Plainfield, IN 46168. Technical support phone numbers have not changed. Zandee Group Debuts Warehouse SARASOTA, Fla.--The Zandee Group has opened a new warehouse, managed by Zandee's Warehouse Division. This venture "offers even the smallest manufacturer the opportunity to have a remote warehouse location without all of the hidden costs associated with renting their own space," said Bob Zandee, president of The Zandee Group. Interested manufacturers may call The Zandee Group at (941) 379-6911 for more information.

SOURCES SAY NEW YORK--Employers are beginning to see the light, caregiver advocates told The New York Times last week. During the past 18 months, many large companies, including Ford, J.P. Morgan Chase and Pearson Education, have hired full-time geriatric care managers to advise employees who care for elderly relatives. "It's a quantum leap in the right direction," Donna Wagner, a professor of gerontology at Towson University in Maryland, told The Times. "It addresses the first questions every caregiver asks: 'Is there something wrong with my mother?' and 'Do I need to do something?'" At a time when corporations are losing approximately $11 billion per year because of absenteeism and turnover among employees who care for elderly people, programs such as these make sense, the article concluded. WASHINGTON--Current budget projections are allowing lawmakers to write checks the country may have trouble cashing, according to a July 3 report from the U.S. Congressional Budget Office. "The federal budget-making process is near-term in nature, with rules and procedures that are applicable only five or 10 years into the future," the CBO said. "As a result, the looming multi-decade rise in government spending associated with society's aging is not in the budget picture on which the Administration and the Congress are required to act annually." Beginning in 2012, federal outlays will increase steadily into the foreseeable future, reaching 40 percent of the gross domestic product by 2075, the CBO projected. Consequently, "it is critical for policymakers to begin addressing the long-term budgetary pressures associated with the aging of the U.S. population," the report concluded. BOISE and POCATELLO, Idaho--U.S. Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, received a checkup on July 2 from a nurse located 200 miles away, the Senate's Special Committee on Aging announced last week. To demonstrate Idaho's new telehealth program, Craig weighed-in on a scale in Pocatello and placed a blood pressure cuff around his arm, while a nurse in Boise listened to his heartbeat, the committee explained. Over a video screen, the nurse was able to give Craig instructions as she monitored incoming data from the computer-attached stethoscope and blood pressure cuff. "It's simple, it's interactive, there's actually a face, a person talks to you," Craig said. As a member of the Senate's Appropriations Committee, Craig was instrumental in assuring that more than $3 million went to Idaho State University's telehealth program, the committee noted.

INDUSTRY BRIEFS Sunrise Medical has appointed W.B. Mick vice president of rehab sales, responsible for the company's new medical rehab specialist sales team. Before joining Sunrise, Mick was director of The Med Group's national rehab network. Praxair, Danbury, Conn., has named Sally Savoia vice president of human resources. Savoia was vice president of healthcare and president of Praxair Healthcare Services, a Praxair subsidiary. George Ristevski, former vice president and controller, succeeds Savoia in her healthcare positions. Patrick Clark has joined the company as vice president and controller. Clark was chief financial officer of Enodis North America. Mary Morrisey Gabriel has joined Melville, N.Y.-based Gentiva Health Services as senior vice president of sales. Also, Nicholas Florio has joined the company as vice president of human resources. John Collura, former chief financial officer of Gentiva Health Services, has been named president and chief operating officer of Andover, Mass.-based Med Diversified. Dave Bailie has joined Homecare Products, Kent, Wash. Bailie will be responsible for the company's manufacturing facility and for developing a line of modular aluminum ramps. Meridian, Miss.-based Vital Care has named Chuck Bell its chief executive officer and chief operations officer. Bell is the former owner of two Vital Care franchises in Mississippi and Florida. Julie Gerberding has been appointed director of the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and administrator for the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. Gerberding has been acting principal deputy director of the CDC since March and has served as acting deputy director of the CDC's National Center for Infectious Diseases. She joined the agency in 1998 as director of the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion. Mark Miller, assistant director of health and human services for the Congressional Budget Office, has been appointed executive director of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission. IN OTHER NEWS Chatsworth, Calif.-based Chad Therapeutics' Cypress Oxypneumatic oxygen conserver has been cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for distribution. The Cypress is the first non-electric oxygen conserver offered by Chad. Nellcor's Max-Fast adhesive forehead sensor has been approved by the U.S. FDA for use in pulse oximetry monitoring of pediatric patients. The Max-Fast sensor was approved for adult use earlier this year. Nellcor, located in Pleasanton, Calif., is a division of Tyco Healthcare. Minneapolis-based QRS Diagnostic and Pittsburgh-based Respironics have entered into a distribution agreement, under which Respironics serves as the primary distributor of QRS spirometry devices to the U.S. home health care market. Longmont, Colo.-based Sunrise Medical has signed a national primary vendor agreement with Beaumont, Texas-based Home Care Supply, under which Sunrise serves as the primary supplier to Home Care Supply for mobility and standard home care products. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded $4.5 million in grant funds to 51 programs that train retirees to help other older Americans identify and prevent billing errors and potential fraud. The programs are part of HHS' Administration on Aging's Senior Medicare Patrol Project. For more information on the Senior Medicare Patrol, visit http://www.aoa.gov/smp. Cigna Medicare, the Region D durable medical equipment regional carrier, is offering two online seminars about electronic data interchange. The seminars are free and sessions are scheduled for July 17, 18 and 24. For more information and to register, visit http://www.cignamedicare.com/wrkshp/dm/webinars/webinars.html. The Health Insurance Association of America has published a new book by Louis Feuer, titled Customer Service Strategies for the Health Care Environment. Feuer is president of Pembroke Pines, Fla.-based Dynamic Seminars and Consulting, and for more than 15 years has been the director of education for Medtrade. For more information or to order a copy of the book, call (954) 435-8182 or visit http://www.dynamicseminars.com. The Health Privacy Project, part of Georgetown University's Institute for Health Care Research and Policy, has released revised summaries of the health privacy statutes for nine states: Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. These summaries, along with those for 23 other states, are available at http://www.healthprivacy.org.

STOCKS Investment firm CSFB has upgraded Praxair, Danbury, Conn., from a "hold" to a "buy" rating. CSFB also initiated coverage on Apria Healthcare and Lincare Holdings, rating the two oxygen providers as a "buy." Company High Low PE Ratio 7/5/02 7/12/02 Change Abbott Laboratories 58.00 31.15 18.51 --- 33.15 --- Allied Healthcare International (TWH) 6.80 2.40 N/A --- 4.65 --- Allied Healthcare Products (AHPI) 5.30 3.10 150.03 --- 4.50 --- American HomePatient (AHOM.OB) 1.70 0.21 N/A --- 0.23 --- AmerisourceBergen (ABC) 82.85 52.12 23.51 --- 61.00 --- Apria Healthcare (AHG) 29.85 19.39 13.92 --- 19.95 --- Cardinal Health (CAH) 76.65 46.80 21.99 --- 52.30 --- CareCentric (CURA) 2.85 0.40 N/A --- 0.53 --- Chad Therapeutics (CTU) 4.35 1.90 24.00 --- 2.95 --- Coram Healthcare (CRHEQ.OB) 0.79 0.13 N/A --- 0.53 --- Gentiva Health Services (GTIV) 27.55 7.90 9.55 --- 8.95 --- Invacare (IVC) 41.25 28.50 28.73 --- 31.89 --- Johnson and Johnson (JNJ) 65.89 49.10 26.41 --- 50.50 --- Lincare Holdings (LNCR) 34.39 22.25 22.85 --- 31.38 --- Matria Healthcare (MATR) 40.00 6.65 8.72 --- 6.80 --- McKesson (MCK) 42.09 27.80 20.66 --- 30.07 --- National Home Healthcare (NHHC) 18.90 7.99 13.10 --- 11.98 --- Option Care (OPTN) 17.72 8.76 20.49 --- 12.46 --- Pediatric Services of America (PSAI) 14.10 4.95 8.21 --- 6.25 --- Praxair (PX) 61.11 36.50 18.94 --- 52.05 --- ResMed (RMD) 62.20 24.30 24.15 --- 26.20 --- Respironics (RESP) 37.88 23.79 22.90 --- 30.15 --- Tyco (TYC) 60.09 8.25 5.39 --- 13.73 --- Walgreen (WAG) 40.70 28.70 35.75 --- 34.88 ---

Visit this week's sponsor at: www.cu.net

HomeCare Monday is produced weekly by the editors and staff of HomeCare Magazine and HomeCare Extra. It is e-mailed on Monday 46 times a year by PRIMEDIA Business Magazines & Media 800/441-0294