Health Care

ATLANTA—The van Halem Group announced the addition of Melissa Pederson and Dr. William Felix to its team of expert consultants. Wayne van Halem, president of The van Halem Group, said he is thrilled to welcome them both to the team.

“Their background, skills and expertise are perfectly aligned with the services we provide to our clients, and we are lucky to have them,” said van Halem.

PITTSBURGH—Clinical investigators from the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) and the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) recently reported that different types of mobility devices and certain characteristics of people with limited mobility are associated with reported falls, according to their study.

KANSAS CITY, Missouri—Serviam Care Network, through its Value-Based Care Alliance, has announced the addition of Bickford Senior Living to the Value-Based Care Alliance of Virginia, which introduces value-based care (VBC) health models to its Virginia communities. This collaboration aims to enhance the quality of care for senior residents while improving health outcomes and reducing costs.

CAMDEN, New Jersey—In a commitment to furthering its partnership with Cooper University Health Care and bolstering essential services for the Camden community, Subaru of America, Inc., has announced its continued support of $30,000 for durable medical equipment (DME) and transportation services to continue to fuel Cooper's mission.

CONCORD, Florida—A Florida man pleaded guilty in federal court for his role in a conspiracy to defraud Medicare of $39.5 million, announced U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young.

Christopher Spellman of Port Richey, Florida, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and was charged on July 17. U.S. District Court Judge Samantha Elliott scheduled sentencing for Nov. 21, 2024. 

WASHINGTON—A new AARP study discovered four in five (78%) older adults who identify as LGBTQ+ are concerned with a lack of support from family and friends as they age. At the same time, nearly half (45%) of these adults are already living with a chronic condition and/or disability.

FRANKLIN, Tennessee—Kythera Labs, Inc. announced its certification as a Qualified Entity from the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS). The CMS Qualified Entity (QE) Program, also known as the Medicare Data Sharing for Performance Measurement Program, enables certified organizations to receive Medicare claims data under Parts A, B and D. Only 39 organizations are QEs and only 23, including Kythera, have access to nationwide data.

LOS ANGELES—The owner of a tattoo removal business in South Gate pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges for recruiting paraplegics in a health care fraud scheme that netted more than $1.7 million and for cheating on his taxes.

Joseph Tusia, 60, of Leominster, Massachusetts, pleaded guilty to a two-count information charging him with health care fraud and tax evasion.

COLUMBIA, South Carolina—Nearly 7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Association, and that number is expected to rise—a statistic that has gerontologist Macie Smith concerned about the ability of the medical community to provide comprehensive support for patients and their caregivers.

PHILADELPHIA—Enclara Pharmacia, a hospice-focused pharmacy services provider, announces the launch of a bidirectional medication interface with MatrixCare, an out-of-hospital health care technology solution. 

JACKSONVILLE, Florida—NeuroX announced it has been selected by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to participate in a new Medicare alternative payment model designed to support people living with dementia and their caregivers.

ATLANTA—Trella Health, a provider of market intelligence and integrated customer relationship management (CRM) solutions to the post-acute care industry, released its 2024 edition of the Post-Acute Care Industry Trends Report.

Leveraging the most recent and complete data available from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, this report highlights trends, ongoing challenges and emerging opportunities shaping the post-acute care industry.

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and Mike Braun (R-IN), Chairman and Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, introduced the bipartisan PACE Anytime Act. The bill will expand access to the PACE program, which provides thousands of lower-income seniors and people with disabilities with comprehensive care. 

ROSEVILLE, California—In these peak summer months, Always Best Care franchise teams nationwide are encouraging seniors and their families to take skin cancer awareness seriously. As leading providers of non-medical in-home care and senior living referral services, Always Best Care professionals know caregivers can play a crucial role in monitoring seniors for any concerning skin changes and helping them get prompt medical attention when needed.

JACKSONVILLE, Florida—Tallio, a health care technology innovation company, announced a strategic partnership with MatrixCare, an out-of-hospital care software. This collaboration aims to transform how home health and hospice organizations complete documentation, improving the clinician experience and unlocking staff capacity while empowering clinicians to focus more on patient care, Tallio said.

CHICAGO, Illinois—The office manager for a suburban Chicago medical equipment boutique has been indicted on federal health care fraud charges for allegedly billing private insurers for products that were never provided, including breast prostheses, compression garments and wigs for cancer survivors.

CHICAGO, Illinois—The Alzheimer’s Association Center for Dementia Respite Innovation (CDRI) announced that it is awarding more than $4 million in grants to 21 community-based service providers to increase the availability of quality dementia-specific respite care. The CDRI is administered through a partnership of the Alzheimer’s Association, University of Minnesota School of Public Health and USAging.

LOS ANGELES, California—The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has been selected by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to participate in a new Medicare alternative payment model designed to support people living with dementia and their caregivers.

IRVING, Texas—PioneerRx, RedSail Technologies' provider of pharmacy management software, announced a new integration with Lansworth Pharma SelfServe, the distributor of Pharmaself24, a premier automated prescription pickup solution.

WASHINGTON—LeadingAge president and CEO Katie Smith Sloan pushed back on criticism that opposition to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) minimum staffing standards final rule has “no justifiable rationale” and allegations that greed is the basis of efforts to halt the rule’s implementation.