AHCA Joins AAHomecare
It was a close vote—6 to 5 to be precise—but in the end, the need to do more with less prompted the financially embattled American Home Care Association (AHCA) to become a part of the American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) of Alexandria, Va.
The merger will mean AHCA’s roughly 200 members will see their 2002 membership dues increase. However, the collaboration also gives them access to a broader base of information, teleconferences, and educational seminars, and to benefit from increased legal advocacy efforts, AAHomecare says.
“By consolidating the resources of our two organizations, we can more effectively and efficiently convey our key messages on Capitol Hill and at Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS),” says AAHomecare board chairman, David Savitsky.
To help ensure that home health agency concerns will be well represented in the 3,000-member AAHomecare, which is primarily composed of HME providers, the association has hired AHCA's executive director, Carmen Johnston, and its director of legislative affairs, Ann Howard. Savitsky is also vice chairman of a home health agency, Tender Loving Care of Lake Success, NY.
“Until now, AAHomecare has focused primarily on HME issues,” says AHCA board member Michael Caracci, owner of Sta-Home Health Agency Inc, Jackson, Miss. “But with our addition, AAHomecare will gain members and staff who are more versed in home health agency issues.”
Security Requirements Will Not Hinder People with Disabilities
Since the September 11 terrorist attacks, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is strengthening security measures at airline checkpoints and passenger screening locations, but not at the cost of the civil rights of people with disabilities.
To ensure that the new security procedures preserve and respect the civil rights of those passengers with disabilities, the US Department of Transportation sent an email to airlines, aviation associations, and the National Council on Disability. The document provides examples of the types of accommodations and services that must be provided to passengers with disabilities. These include: the permission to have syringes on board an aircraft once it is determined that the passenger has a documented medical need for the syringe; assistive mobility devices, such as walkers and canes, once they are inspected; and personal wheelchairs, power chairs, and scooters used to reach departure gates, once they are inspected.
To download the complete fact sheet for traveling customers concerned about their rights, visit www.dot.gov/airconsumer/Civil%20Rights%20Fact%20Sheet.htm.
 2002 Leadership Conference Heads WestFrom February 20 to 22, industry movers and shakers will descend on the Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson, Ariz, for the annual American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare), Leadership Conference. The meeting will address what the industry must do to ensure that policy makers, regulators, the media, and consumers recognize home health care as the high-quality, cost-effective, and patient-preferred setting for care within an increasingly competitive health care environment, AAHomecare says. Henry R. Desmarais, MD, MPA, senior vice president of policy and information for the Health Insurance Association of America, will deliver the keynote speech. For more information about the conference, visit www.aahomecare.org/ members/leadership_hilites.htm. |
Medtrade Spring Expands
Medtrade Spring (formerly Medtrade West) is moving to the Sands Expo & Convention Center in Las Vegas in anticipation of an increase in attendance of 5,000 participants. Held from April 22 to 24, the show will include more than 350 exhibitors, 100 new products, and 75 seminars.
“With our attendee and exhibitor bases growing both domestically and internationally, Medtrade Spring 2002 is expected to surpass all previous attendance records,” says Cory Smith, Medtrade’s group show director. “The growth of Medtrade Spring reflects this rapidly expanding industry.”
For more information, call (800) 933-8735 or visit www.medtradespring.com .
| Question of the Month |
 Will the merger of the American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) and the American Home Care Association (AHCA) help your business?To submit your answer, visit www.hhcdealer.com, or write Question of the Month, Home Health Care Dealer/Provider, 6701 Center Drive West, Suite 450, Los Angeles, CA 90045. Answers will be published in the April Medtrade issue. |
RATC Builds on Excellence
When David Williams, director of government relations for Invacare Corp, Elyria, Ohio, joined the Re/hab and Assistive Technology Council (RATC) of the American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) in December 2001 as the first executive director, he brought with him many years of political activism and 8 years as chief advisor on health and disability policy to the governor of Ohio.
Now, it is Mary-Lacey Reuther’s turn to build on the foundation of legislative leadership that Williams began. Reuther will join AAHomecare and the RATC as the new full-time executive director after serving as deputy executive director for the Medical Device Manufacturers Association (MDMA).
“Her extensive experience with medical technology issues, as well as her knowledge of association business, will serve as a tremendous asset to our organization,” says Tom Connaughton, AAHomecare president and CEO.
With the AAHomecare Leadership Conference this month, Reuther’s initiation could not have come at a better time.
“I’m looking forward to getting a feel from all the members of the Re/hab council on the particulars of the rehab industry and to get a good feel for what their concerns and issues are so that we can better serve [the HME community],” Reuther says.
| A Decade of Accomplishments Most people have the goal of retiring at age 55, but Rosemary Francisco, a 52-year-old who, after raising three children as a single mother, had other ideas. In 1992 she founded Diamond Medical Equipment & Supply Inc, Little Rock, Ark, after being in the HME business for over 20 years. Now, a decade later, Diamond Medical continues to be family owned, operating with 19 employees in two locations. Diamond provides a full line of HME and respiratory services, including liquid oxygen, and last year added power-operated vehicles. “Rosemary is here every day and is very active in the company. She truly loves the business, even with all the challenges,” says Cindy Bishop, Francisco’s daughter, who joined the company in 1996. Although there are no big plans on celebrating the company’s 10-year anniversary, Bishop states that recognizing her mother’s accomplishments is celebration enough. “She is an inspiration to so many people,” she says. |
Legislative News
Medicare Changes Forms
Providers wishing to enroll in the Medicare program must now use new forms. All 1/98 versions of Form HCFA-855 postmarked after December 31, 2001, will be returned with a request to complete the appropriate new form, available in Portable Document Format (PDF) at www.hcfa.gov/medicare/enrollment/forms.
Industry Gets Boost from MedPAC
The results of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) study on Medicare reimbursement are in, and they are good. MedPAC, the independent body established by the Balanced Budget Act (BBA) of 1997 to advise Congress on issues affecting Medicare, voted unanimously to recommend eliminating the 15% cut to home health care benefits mandated by the BBA. It also advised eliminating the 1.1% reduction in the market basket update for home health prospective payment system (PPS) rates in 2003 and extending the 10% add-on PPS payments for rural home health beneficiaries until April 2005.
HHS Asks for Feedback
Frustrated by Medicare paperwork? HME providers now have a chance to voice their opinions regarding regulatory burdens created by US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) rules.
In the January 4 Federal Register, the Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Regulatory Reform asks for comments from health care providers to pinpoint specific areas in which HHS regulations “inhibit the delivery of high quality, timely, and efficient health care.”
The committee is part of HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson’s efforts to reform the department. “We will listen carefully to the people affected by our regulations, including both patients and providers,” he says. “When appropriate, we will change these requirements to make them more effective and efficient, and we will work with Congress to change specific provisions in the law that may lead to unnecessary and excessive regulatory burdens.”
Comments from the public are due by March 5, 2002. HHS will take comments at www.regreform.hhs.gov. To view the Federal Register notice, visit www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fedreg/a020104c.html.
Health Care Bill Approved
On December 4, the House of Representatives unanimously passed HR 3391: the “Medicare Regulatory and Contracting Reform Act of 2001.”
The regulatory relief for Medicare providers, passed by a House vote of 408 to 0, represents a new way in which the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will work with providers, contractors, and beneficiaries.
Within HR 3391, CMS officials will be allowed to issue new Medicare regulations only once a month and will allow providers 30 days to comply with the new rules. The bill also includes provisions limiting the use of extrapolation by CMS during audits, expands the rights that providers have to appeal audits, and streamlines the appeals process.
The Senate debates the bill next.
HIPAA Compliance Delayed
On December 27, President George W. Bush delayed the compliance deadlines for parts of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) by signing into law HR 3323: the “Administrative Simplification Compliance Act.” The HIPAA Transactions and Code Sets Rule is delayed until October 16, 2003. However, the compliance deadline for the privacy regulation remains the same.
To qualify for a deadline extension for the Transactions and Code Sets Rule, companies must submit a compliance plan to the Secretary of HHS by October 16, 2002. The plan must include a budget, schedule, work plan, and implementation strategy for achieving compliance. The companies also need to submit the reasons why they need the extension, whether the company plans to use another vendor to assist them in achieving compliance, and a timeframe for testing that begins by April 16, 2003.
A final version of HR 3323 is available at www.hipaadvisory.com/news/2001/HR3323Final.pdf.
Code Changes for Diabetic Benefits
As of January 1, 2002, several code changes to the Therapeutic Shoes for Diabetics Medicare benefit are in effect. Reported by the Pedorthic Footwear Association (PFA), the changes are based, in part, on PFA’s request for a custom-molded insert code.
For more information, visit http://pedorthics.org/newcodes.html.
| State Watch |
 Arizona—With the formation of the Arizona Medical Equipment Suppliers Association (AZMESA) Interim Executive Committee in December, the approximately 500 HME providers operating in Arizona gained a common voice.“We wanted to present an organized front,” says Craig Harris of Sierra Vista Regional Health Center, interim AZMESA president. “The development of a statewide organization to bring more people into a group to have their voices heard, share information, and get feedback works quite well in other states.” Arizona did have a state association in the early ’90s, but it folded. “I don’t know why [the previous association] was discontinued, but I think that it must have operated strictly locally or statewide and did not present itself on a national level,” Harris says, stressing the importance of national representation for any association that hopes to succeed. “We are a legal entity now, we have a complete board of directors, and we are recruiting members,” Harris says. “We are definitely in the infancy stages, but we are very confident that this is going to grow and be a viable organization.” AZMESA’s Interim Executive Committee is as follows: president, Craig Harris; vice president, Maureen Hanna of Healthcare Reimbursement Consultants Inc; secretary, Doug Thole of Banner Health System; and treasurer, Rick McKee of Carondelet Home Health. To become involved in AZMESA, contact the AZMESA office, 10480 Perkins Avenue North, Stillwater, MN, 55082; (651) 439-2944; e-mail: ArizonaMESA@aol.com.  North Carolina—On November 12, 2001, the North Carolina Respiratory Care Board approved a provision in which issued licenses will be valid for a period of 1 year, except for the following restrictions: Licenses that are granted on or before January 2, 2002, will be valid for 21 months; on or before April 1, 2002, will be valid for 18 months; on or before July 1, 2002, will be valid for 15 months. More information can be obtained by contacting the North Carolina Association for Medical Equipment Services (NCAMES), (919) 387-1221; www.ncames.org.
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News in Brief
Gentiva Opens Atlanta Location
Gentiva Health Services, Melville, NY, announced on January 8 that it had opened a new location in Atlanta, which will provide home health care and related services to patients in the metropolitan Atlanta region.
The address and phone number for the new location are: Gentiva Health Services, 1303 High Tower Trail, Ste 140, Atlanta, GA 30350; (770) 998-1393.
Med Diversified To Acquire Addus
Med Diversified Inc, Andover, Mass, announced in January that it signed a definitive agreement to acquire Addus HealthCare Inc. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Welker To Head Ambulatory Division of Methodist Healthcare
Steve Welker, president of Methodist Alliance Health Services, takes on responsibility for Methodist Healthcare’s Ambulatory Services Division. He will manage operations and development of ambulatory services including Le Bonheur Ambulatory Services, Preventive Medicine, and adult minor medical centers.
ACHC Adds Board Members
The Accreditation Commission for Health Care Inc (ACHC), Raleigh, NC, welcomes Mark DeLegge, MD, Melissa McIntyre, RN, OCN, and Mickey N. Letson to its Board of Commissioners.
Lincare Settles with Feds
Lincare Holdings, Clearwater, Fla, a provider of home oxygen, has agreed to pay the federal government more than $3 million to resolve claims that two of its locations in Chico, Calif, and Redding, Calif, improperly billed Medicare of an undisclosed amount from 1995 to 1997. “Health care providers can and will be held accountable for their billing practices,” said US Attorney John Vincent. Lincare does not admit any wrongdoing.
Bears Raise Cash for CF
The PA Cystic Fibrosis Inc (PACFI) and the Pennsylvania Association of Medical Suppliers (PAMS) “Million Dollar Bear” campaign for cystic fibrosis (CF) has surpassed its initial goal of selling 300 Burke P. Bears. In fact, just as the year 2001 came to a close, 2001 bears were sold, including one to then Gov Tom Ridge, now director of the Office of Homeland Security.
Visit www.pamsonline.org or www.pacfi.org for more information on the campaign and CF research.
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