Category Posts

VGM was thrilled to be at another in-person event this week with the VGM Roadshow and TexMEP Event in Dallas yesterday. The VGM speakers included John Gallagher, VP of Government Relations, Ronda Buhrmester, Senior Director of Reimbursement and Payer Relations, and Craig Douglas, VP of Payer Relations.

The event concluded with a social event hosted by Victoria Peterson, President of TexMEP, as well as other TexMEP board members.

Our thanks to TexMEP for hosting the event. If...

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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’...

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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...

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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,...

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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...

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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,...

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This message is shared on behal of MAMES

This week, Representative Sharice Davids toured Cherub Medical Supplies, a Shawnee-based supplier of pediatric medical devices that is grappling with long delays due to the current shortage of critical materials like semiconductors. Davids joined Cherub and another local company, Lenexa-based Reliable Medical Supplies, to urge passage of legislation that would reduce our reliance on foreign-made materials and deliver these lifesaving devices...

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On Friday, January 14th, 2022, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra announced an extension of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE). This extension will last another 90 days from January 16, 2022. Any PHE declaration can only last for 90 days at a time but can be extended or renewed. It has already been renewed multiple times.

There are several provisions tied to the duration of the PHE that will remain in place due to the extension of the PHE, including:

Medicare’s...

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Today, Thursday, January 13, 2022, the Supreme Court stopped the Biden administration’s vaccination-or-testing requirement on the nation’s largest employers, expressing doubt that there is legal authority for such a broad mandate.

But the court allowed a different policy, which requires vaccinations for most healthcare workers at the facilities that receive Medicaid and Medicare funds.  (Note: With certain exceptions, DMEPOS suppliers do NOT fall within the policy[1].)

Chief...

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Listen below as Ronda Buhrmester breaks down the new prior auth list, requirements, and the phases to implementation. 

Click here for the update master list of items subject to face-to-face and WOPD and/or prior auths.

And register for Ronda’s upcoming Live Chat, Wednesday, January 20th at 11am central as she covers PHE waivers, and disects the new master list. Register for her Live Chat! Seats are limited!

 

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