HME Companies Nab Spots on <em>Inc.</em> 500/5000 List

NEW YORK — Despite the calamitous environment for home medical equipment companies and their ancillary partners, at least a score managed to land on Inc. magazine's annual 500/5000 list.

The 2010 list, released Tuesday, ranks the nation's fastest-growing private companies based on percentage revenue growth over the last three years.

"Fast growth at any time is a big achievement; fast growth during the past few years is just short of miraculous," said Inc. editor Jane Berentson in a release. "The Inc. 500 consists of these just-short-of-miraculous companies, the ones that through ingenuity and ambition have increased revenue, hired employees and grown fast in difficult economic times."

Comfort Medical Supply in Ormond Beach, Fla., came in at 461 on the list. The 5-year-old company, which specializes in power mobility, orthotic back support devices and drug-free pain therapy, grew 649 percent, building revenue from $549,042 in 2006 to $4.1 million in 2009.

"We attribute our growth and success to our ability to be 'nimble,' react quickly to change and — more importantly — our dedicated employees who possess an entrepreneurial spirit and take personal ownership in their work," said Craig Daley, CEO and managing member, in a release. "We anticipate continued expansion of market share as we develop and implement unique and creative marketing strategies."

Neighborhood Diabetes, a 12-year-old mail-order diabetes supply company based in Woburn, Mass., nabbed the 1,139th slot on the expanded list of 5,000. Between 2006 and 2009, it grew 264 percent, from $14.3 million to $52 million.

"We think we have a model that is different than most folks in our industry, so we have been very lucky to be able to grow as a result of that model," CEO Tom Cronin told HomeCare, adding, "We have always believed that if a company can use its status as a distributor to clearly improve the health of patients and decrease the cost of caring for them ... we will succeed in the long run, and we feel we have achieved that."

Cronin said a recent study by an insurer supported the company's philosophy. According to the study results, patients using Neighborhood Diabetes had 71 percent fewer hospitalizations than those using other area providers, he said.