WASHINGTON, D.C. (September 23, 2019)—The House of Representatives Veterans Affairs committee held a hearing on September 11 on H.R. 1527, the Long-Term Care Veterans Choice Act, a bill to expand access to homecare for veterans and help keep them out of institutional settings.
WATERLOO, Iowa (September 23, 2019)—Four finalists have been named for the 2019 HME Woman of the Year. The winner will be announced during a special ceremony at the Medtrade Home Medical Equipment Expo & Conference in Atlanta Oct. 21-23, 2019.
The HME Woman of the Year finalists are:
PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y. (September 23, 2019)—Drive DeVilbiss Healthcare (Drive) announced that it agreed in principle to receive $35 million in new capital together with a reduction in cash debt service obligations from its current lenders. The transaction has broad support across Drive’s capital structure, including a substantial majority of Drive’s first and second lien lenders and new capital from the company’s primary equity holders.
ELYRIA, Ohio (September 20, 2019)—Invacare Corporation (IVC) announced the appointment of Julie Beck to its board of directors, effective Sept. 18, 2019. Beck currently serves as senior vice president and chief financial officer for NOVA Chemicals Corporation, a petrochemical company, a position she has held since 2016.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (September 20, 2019)—The 2020 ESRD/DMEPOS Proposed Rule that was published on Aug. 6, includes changes to the gap filling framework, payment conditions, and change of ownership (CHOW) timeline. Below are high-level points AAHomecare will be making:
GAP-FILLING:
WASHINGTON, D.C. (September 20, 2019)—With the CB Round 2021 bid window closing Wednesday, The American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) hopes to rally suppliers and other HME stakeholders to resume advocacy on HME policy priorities, including extending and expanding relief for non-bid rural suppliers (HR 2771), CRT-related legislation (HR 2293, S 1223, and HR 2408), and expected legislation on non-invasive ventilators in competitive bidding.
Sharing patient data across the care continuum
AMSTERDAM (September 17, 2019)—Royal Philips, a global provider of health technology, announced the commercial launch of Philips NightBalance, a prescription sleep position therapy device designed for patients with positional obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). A mask-free alternative to existing positional OSA treatments, Philips NightBalance is a positional therapy that uses gentle vibrations to encourage users to alter their sleeping positions to help prevent apneas.
WATERLOO, Iowa (September 17, 2019)—For the third time in five years, VGM Group has been selected as Iowa’s Top Workplace among large employers. The company has taken the top spot in each of the three years it has participated: 2015, 2017, and 2019.