Brightree Brings Integration of Denial Management Service Online
RemitDATA denial management tools soon will be available within Brightree®, an online application that allows providers to manage their own company information from the Internet. The integration comes as a result of an agreement between the developer of Brightree, Fidelis Software Inc, based in Duluth, Ga, and RemitDATA Inc, Memphis, Tenn.

“Although customers can still utilize RemitDATA’s denial management reporting services as a stand-alone package, we are excited about the seamless integrated offering of our services within Brightree,” says Bently Goodwin, president of RemitDATA. “The Web-based utilization of these reporting tools will mean even higher productivity gains as well as providing Brightree customers with a more positive, streamlined experience.”

The integration of RemitDATA’s services into the Brightree Web-based platform will be complete by the end of the year.

Miclot Takes Top Post at Respironics
Starting December 1, John L. Miclot will take over the position of president and CEO of Respironics Inc, based in Murrysville, Pa. Miclot succeeds James W. Liken, who held the post since August 1999. Liken will assume the newly created role of vice chairman of Respironics.

Miclot most recently held the position of chief strategic officer of Respironics and previously served as president of the Homecare Division for 31¼2 years.

Liken says the appointment—announced by the board of directors in October—is the result of a succession plan that the board of directors and he have been working on for the past several years.

“[Miclot] has done an outstanding job in his various leadership roles since joining Respironics in 1998. He has over two decades of experience in the medical device industry, and has a proven track record of leading successful market-driven strategies,” Liken says. “[Miclot] is an enthusiastic and talented leader, and I am confident that the breadth and depth of his experiences in the medical device industry combined with his leadership style will enable him to successfully lead Respironics in the next phase of the company’s growth.”

Miclot says the current senior management team will remain, led by COO Craig Reynolds and CFO Dan Bevevino. With more time on his hands, Liken says he plans to become more involved in advocating for the industry’s national political goals and supporting the American Association for Homecare.

Medical Industries America To Sell Aerogen Nebulizer
Aerogen Inc and Medical Industries America Inc have entered into an agreement for manufacturing and marketing of the Aeroneb® Go Nebulizer, which uses Aerogen’s OnQ™ aerosol generator technology. Under the terms of the agreement, Medical Industries America, based in Des Moines, Iowa, will have the exclusive rights to manufacture and market the Aeroneb Go for use in the home care market in the United States and certain countries worldwide. Aerogen, headquartered in Mountain View, Calif, will receive up-front payments totaling $2.5 million and will supply OnQ Aerosol generators to Medical Industries America under a transfer pricing arrangement. In addition, Medical Industries America will pay Aerogen royalties on its gross sales of the Aeroneb Go and its accessories.

The Aeroneb Go is CE marked in Europe, and 510(k) clearance in the United States is pending.

Permobil Unveils New Look
In October, Permobil Inc revealed its redesigned logo with added colors and dimension.

“As we grow and our product offerings evolve, it is fitting that our corporate identity evolve as well,” says Larry Jackson, president of the Lebanon, Tenn-based mobility company.

According to Marketing Manager Barry Steelman, the new design is indicative of an automotive emblem, representing the power and mobility of Permobil products.

“As a tribute to our founder, Dr Per Udden, who passed away in December 2002, a special halo appears above the ‘PER’ in Permobil,” Steelman says.

Respironics, PARI Team for Aerosol Drug Delivery
Respironics Inc’s compressor nebulizer systems, the Inspiration® 626 and the MisterNeb®, and PARI Respiratory Equipment Inc’s PARI LC Plus® reusable nebulizer are now packaged as a single product.

“It’s a powerful and winning combination,” says Laura Macaluso, Respironics product manager. “PARI and Respironics recognized that the two companies have similar corporate values, especially with respect to providing the highest level of quality and service, and we knew it was time to join forces to provide outstanding aerosol drug delivery to patients, as well as the most convenient service to our respective customers.”

Under the distribution agreement, Respironics will be the sole manufacturer with the right to package and sell PARI LC Plus reusable nebulizers and accessories with a compressor or as stand-alone items.

Also available for use with the Respironics nebulizer compressors are PARI’s Bubbles the Fish™ aerosol mask, the adult aerosol mask, and the PARI Baby™ mask conversion packs 1, 2, and 3.

The agreement will simplify shipping, handling, and warehousing of both product lines, according to Respironics.

Gauze Sponges Augment Medline’s Product Line
Medline Industries Inc, Mundelein, Ill, has expanded its wound care line. Specifically, the company introduced a premium line of nonwoven sponges called Avant Deluxe® and a cotton and polyester blended gauze sponge called Accu Sorb®.

Medline says the new gauze sponge products will help fill a void left by market leader Johnson and Johnson® Wound Management, a division of Ethicon® Inc, which announced plans to phase out production and marketing of selected general wound care product lines, including eye pads, sponges, gauze pads, tapes, and cleaners, according to a letter to its distributors, one of which is Medline.

By the beginning of the fourth quarter this year, Medline plans to introduce additional products to its traditional wound care line, including Montgomery straps, moleskin, and Bulkee Lite wound dressings, a more economical version of Medline’s Bulkee gauze bandages.

Senator Arlen Specter Tours Pride Headquarters

Scott Meuser, chairman and CEO of Pride Mobility Products, (left) and Dan Meuser, president of Pride USA, (right) meet with Senator Arlen Specter (R-Pa) (center). Pride Mobility Products Corp, Exeter, Pa, recently received a visit from the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health, Human Services, and Education, who is committed to making quality health care more accessible and affordable through ensuring that adequate resources are available for all aspects of health care. Senator Arlen Specter (R-Pa)—who is also on several other Senate committees, including Governmental Affairs and Judiciary, and is the chairman on the Veterans’ Affairs Committee—toured the facilities and met with key company executive officers, including Scott Meuser, chairman and CEO of Pride; Dan Meuser, president of Pride USA; and Martin Szmal, Pride’s director of government affairs. In the meeting, Pride representatives discussed the potential negative effects of the House’s competitive bidding plan to reduce Medicare spending on HME. Specter plans to support the Senate’s alternative cost-cutting measure, the consumer price index (CPI) inflation adjustment freeze on Medicare HME payments, Pride officials say. “Senator Specter does not believe competitive bidding is appropriate and in the long run feels it will actually hinder the HME industry,” Szmal says.

In Brief

Melissa Coombs Louise Sauvage, a member of Invacare Corp’s Team Invacare, won her fifth consecutive gold medal at the International Association of Athletics Federations’ world championships. Invacare Corp, Elyria, Ohio, sponsors approximately 75 wheelchair athletes and teams, including wheelchair tennis, basketball, and quad rugby teams, and individual track and racing athletes. • Melissa Coombs of Rehab Marketing recently joined Altimate Medical, Morton, Minn, as an independent manufacturer representative for the company’s EasyStand and Ovation products. She will be covering Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire. • George Trimble recently joined PEL Supply Co, Cleveland, as vice president, director of operations. In the position, Trimble will be responsible for the overall day-to-day operations of this independent wholesale distributor of health care products.

CAIRE Hosts Minnesota ALA Open House

Attendance grew 20% for CAIRE Inc’s second annual open house for the Minnesota chapter of the American Lung Association. For the second year in a row, CAIRE Inc, Burnsville, Minn, let long-term oxygen patients from the Minnesota chapter of the American Lung Association (ALA) hold their monthly meeting at CAIRE. The group also heard a lecture on oxygen and took a tour of the CAIRE facilities. This allowed CAIRE employees to see firsthand the benefits of their products and hear patient feedback. According to CAIRE representatives, the ALA patients loved the opportunity to meet the people who build their type of oxygen equipment. Compared to the 2002 open house, the 2003 event attendance grew by 20%. The positive comments from the patients may convince CAIRE to to make this an annual event.