Small Town, Big Ideas

Mexia is a small town of 6,000 that is typical in Central Texas, but it has achieved notoriety for being the hometown of Anna Nicole Smith. Unfortunately, all of the stories of Anna Nicole are based on the past — from super model to billionaire's wife to a legend who died too young.

Yet in Mexia, one HME provider is looking forward, not backwards, to improve his business and ensure its future.

W.H. Wragge, RRT, has been in the HME business for 26 years, and he intends to stay. MultiPlex Health Care Services, a full-service HME company that has five locations in Texas, started preparing for competitive bidding years ago through automation, education and diversification.

Focusing on efficiency is the “war plan” for his business, Wragge says, and he advises others to do the same. “If you are not efficient, you have lost the game,” he says.

Efficiency Is Name of the Game

That said, being efficient is challenging, especially in the HME industry. “There has always been change. Change is going to be constant, but so much of our industry is made up of independent providers and we want to take care of our patients,” notes Wragge. “For us, this has evolved into a noble approach of being very patient care-minded, which we still are today, but we have had to adjust the way we run our business. The mind-set must be on efficiency.”

When Wragge witnessed demonstration projects in Polk County, Fla., and San Antonio, he knew the government would proceed with competitive bidding and that he needed to plan ahead. His forward-thinking turned out to be a good move since two of the company's locations landed in the Dallas competitive bidding area. It also meant he had to rethink his longtime business model, which involved a focus on rural care. “With competitive bidding we are going to have to go into the Dallas metroplex,” he says.

Wragge says that while competitive bidding equates to nothing more than decreased revenues, it will elevate the professionalism of the HME industry. “It is going to create a more difficult pathway for people who are not committed to professionalism, which is a positive aspect for our industry,” he says.