Alexandria, Va. In what could be considered a pivotal move in the future of home health care, three national health care industry associations have merged.

The National Association for Medical Equipment Services, the Home Health Services and Staffing Association and the home care division of the Health Industry Distributors Association are combining to form the American Association for Homecare.

"This is a very significant event in the history of our industry," said Mario LaCute, chairman of NAMES. "Each group brings significant strengths to the new association. We will now speak with one voice on home care-related issues to Congress, HCFA and other policy-makers. We will provide a unified and strong voice for home care services that enhance the quality of life for millions of Americans, are cost-effective, medically efficacious and, most important, customer-preferred."

Saying it was time for the industry to unite, David Savitsky, chairman of HHSSA, noted: "There is a clear need for an organization with high credibility among legislators and home care providers to help preserve and improve access to medically necessary home care. The people we have to work with in government, whether it be Congress, the regulatory agencies or the states ... [are] the same people who regulate us and make laws whether we're in [home medical equipment], I.V. therapy or home health care. It doesn't make any sense to be coming to these people in discreet fashion, focusing on one aspect of the industry, when we really should be looking at it in totality. That's what we expect to achieve from this."

Officials say no decision has been made as to who will lead the new association, but leadership will include Mara Benner of HHSSA, Cara Bachenheimer of HIDA and Asela Cuervo of NAMES.

Also, Savitsky said, members will have strong input as to the scope and direction of the association. "We don't see this as a bureaucratic organization that's going to be far removed from the issues and the pulse of what's going on in the industry on a day-to-day basis," he said. "We will see that the board of directors, the executive committee and the officers have a lot of input and involvement in the organization."

The new association's structure will be one that represents all facets of home care previously covered by the three separate associations, he said. "There are going to be councils for different interest groups, so we can be that big umbrella and accomplish a lot but still focus on all the key issues in which everyone is interested.

"We see a lot of involvement on the part of our members in the way the organization is run," Savitsky continued. "We think that's very important and we want to make sure that the structure of the organization is going to give everyone a good feeling that their interests are represented."

Talk about a unified voice for the industry has been swirling for years, begging the question of "Why now?" Savitsky said it was time the home care industry stopped leaving itself defenseless to criticism.

"It's no secret that home care has taken a beating in the last couple of years," he said, "and one of the reasons ... is because people have been able to take potshots at different aspects of the industry at different times. It has been difficult to defend.

"I think that, as an association that's united on all aspects of the industry, it's going to be easier for people to see us as a whole, unified group."

Savitsky said that being unified would allow home health care representatives to "go to the members of Congress, go to the people who are on the [congressional] committees, and go to HCFA and say, 'Look, here's the whole spectrum of services we provide, and here's what we need to be effective for the beneficiaries.'"

AAH's headquarters are in the NAMES offices in Alexandria, Va.

Washington The second competitive bidding demonstration project for Medicare Part B items and services, which was to have begun in April 2000, will instead commence on Jan. 1, 2001, according to the Health Care Financing Administration.

The new competitive bidding project will cover standardized orthotic products, manual wheelchairs and nebulizer drugs. Oxygen equipment and supplies and hospital beds, which are part of the current project in Polk County, Fla., will also be included.

Bidding for the project is expected to begin in June or July of this year. HCFA did not reveal the site for the second demonstration, but industry officials said they expect that announcement soon. While the second project could take place in any medium-sized metropolitan area within the Durable Medical Equipment Regional Carrier Region C, which covers primarily the South and Southeast, officials speculate it will be in either Texas or Florida. That's largely because Sens. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, and Bob Graham, D-Fla., both want the second demonstration in their respective states.

Alexandria, Va. Wayne Kay, president and chief executive officer of the Health Industry Distributors Association since 1994, has stepped down to pursue interests in the electronic commerce industry.

Kay will join Neoforma.com as senior vice president of supply chain development for the business-to-business, e-commerce service provider.

The vacancy left at HIDA will be temporarily filled by chief operating officer Matt Rowan, while its board of directors searches for a permanent replacement. HIDA Chairman Al Wicks said the association was sorry to lose Kay. "However, we are fortunate that HIDA is in an excellent position ... to move ahead in the coming year."

Before joining HIDA almost two years ago, Rowan had served as deputy executive director of the Water Environment Federation. Before joining the association, Kay had spent 20 years in the health care manufacturing industry, serving as president and CEO of Enzymatics and as president of SmithKline Diagnostics. -J.P.P.