February Archives

Survey: Additional Pandemic/Supply Chain Expenses to an HME Supplier

Please take a few minutes to complete this 11-question survey. This is a follow-up to VGM’s 2021 Home Medical Equipment Delivery Cost Report (click here to view the 2021 Delivery Cost Survey responses). The 2021 survey included nearly 100 independent Home Medical Equipment (HME) providers that demonstrated the real cost of providing oxygen, hospital beds, mobility equipment, and more to patients’...

VGM and Leitten Consulting recently published an updated study, “Competitive Bidding -A Decade Focused on the Wrong Prize: The Case for Medicare Investment in DME in 2021.” This study looks at how investing in Durable Medical Equipment (DME) instead of trying to control distribution, specifically regarding chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and falls, can save the government billions of dollars, as well as allow for more providers and greater...

Yesterday, medical equipment suppliers in Kentucky and Tennessee attended a virtual meeting discussing the tornados that ripped through Kentucky and Tennessee in December. The meeting was assembled by Tangita Daramola, Competitive Acquisition Ombudsman, and the VGM Government Relations team.  

Suppliers from Kentucky and Tennessee were able to voice their concerns regarding needs and difficulties during the December tornados with representatives from FEMA,...

On February 4, 2022, the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) issued guidance to health care providers on civil rights protections for people with disabilities. VGM has received several inquires as to the more specific nature of the guidance. 

To be clear, the release is an update of an earlier (March 28, 2020) HHS bulletin, which included information relative to civil rights, HIPAA, and the Coronavirus Disease 2019. 

The bulletin noted “…in light...

Last week, VGM member Ed Dressen of Dressen Medical Supply appeared on the local news discussing the supply chain issues with Channel 1 News Spectrum News in Central North Carolina.

Ed told the news reporter, “I’ve always been able to make a phone call and get it (equipment) in a short amount of time. I’ve never had to plan out weeks and months ahead of time to get the supplies,” Dressen explained.

Regarding reimbursement rates within the HME industry,...