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 Medtrade’s Grassroots Central Encourages Political Involvement
A single 1,500-square-foot area on the Medtrade show floor will provide many of the resources needed to learn about and become involved in the state and national legislative issues that impact HME companies.
Medtrade attendees who visit the area, called Grassroots Central, can email congressional representatives, pick up position papers on major legislative issues, and visit the tables of more than 15 participating state associations. In addition, Grassroots Central will host a state association panel discussion on Medicaid cuts at 2 pm on October 9 and another on state licensure issues at 2 pm on October 10. “We are not talking about surviving, we are talking about thriving, and generally the people who are not involved in their state associations do not know half of what is expected of them until the Office of Inspector General auditor walks through the door or they start receiving denials of claims with their payor source,” says Wade Hendrickson, president, Hendrickson Healthcare, Rock Rapids, Iowa, and founding member of the Arizona Medical Equipment Suppliers Association, which is participating in Grassroots Central. Endorsed by the American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare), Grassroots Central is completely free to all Medtrade exhibition attendees. “Grassroots must be a primary focus of the home care community because there is no greater cause than advocating for our patients,” says Kay Cox, president and CEO for AAHomecare. “And, while many home care providers are already politically savvy, I encourage individuals to stop by Grassroots Central and sharpen their skills and their minds for the legislative battle we are currently fighting.” The grassroots lobbying area will also host presentations and question-and-answer sessions with industry advocates and government relations experts including: - A. Malachi Mixon III, chairman and CEO of Invacare, Elyria, Ohio
- Rita Hostak, vice president of government relations for Sunrise Medical, Longmont, Colo
- Darren Jernigan, director of government affairs for Permobil, Lebanon, Tenn
- Martin Szmal, director of government affairs for Pride Mobility Products Corp, Exeter, Pa
- John Gallagher, director of government relations for VGM Group, Waterloo, Iowa
- Jacquelyn M. McClure, BS, RRT, national respiratory network and government relations director for The MED Group, Lubbock, Tex
Sponsored by Home Health Care Dealer/ Provider® magazine and VNU Expositions Inc, Grassroots Central will be located at the Medtrade Meeting Place at the end of the 5,000 aisle in Hall B5 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. The first 5,000 visitors will receive “I Fight For Homecare” stickers. Attendees can visit the area during regular exhibit hall hours.
| Blackout Downs Electronic Phone Systems, Keeps Providers Busy While most New York employees were getting the dark, quiet afternoon of August 14 off, providers in the state were on high alert. The blackout took out electronic phone systems, including those of Homecare Concepts Inc in Farmingdale, NY, and Landauer Metropolitan in Mount Vernon, NY. That loss of communication meant worried patients had no way of contacting the dealerships about backup oxygen supplies. Taking a proactive approach, both providers switched to manual phone lines and called to check on every single patient starting with those with high-oxygen demands. That strategy meant more than 1,800 calls for the staff at Landauer Metropolitan. “We used the fax lines since those did not run through the electronic system,” says Landauer Metropolitan CEO Alan Landauer. “Some of the staff went out and bought old-fashioned telephones and they sat on the floor and called on 11 or 12 lines.” Landauer says everyone worked “very nicely together,” including nearby vendors, who helped by delivering oxygen to patients in areas his dealership could not reach because of traffic. Landauer Metropolitan did the same for one vendor in return. After calling patients and assessing their needs, Frank Brown, executive vice president of Homecare Concepts, and his staff worked into the early morning hours of August 15 filling oxygen tanks by the light of the delivery trucks (shining their headlights into the back of the store) and battling city traffic to make deliveries. “Getting into New York City was a disaster because they were just trying to let everybody out,” Brown says. When that first hectic night ended, the work still was not over for the crews at Homecare Concepts and Landauer Metropolitan. Although oxygen concentrators began working again as the electricity gradually came back on neighborhood by neighborhood, patient backup supplies needed replacing. So, the staffs went into the city once again. “I’m very proud of the way the staff responded,” Brown says. “It was a good measure to see what type of company we have; you know, you’re only as good as your people.” Both Brown and Landauer say they are looking into purchasing backup generators to prevent future phone line problems. |
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