Alexis Ward Departs from AAHomecare Longtime Complex Rehab Technology (CRT) advocate and policy expert Alexis Ward has announced she’s departing the American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare). Ward had served as AAHomecare’s senior director of payer relations. In a Dec. 18 email to colleagues, Ward said, “It has been an honor and privilege to work alongside…
Briefly: Alexis Ward Leaves AAHomecare; Motion Concepts Has a New Canadian Address
NCART Welcomes Two New Board Members
Industry veterans John Letizia and Brad Peterson have joined the National Coalition for Assistive & Rehab Technology board.
The National Coalition for Rehab & Assistive Technology (NCART) has welcomed two additional board members. In a Dec. 12 announcement to members, NCART said Brad Peterson (Amylior) and John Letizia (Laurel Medical Solutions) had been elected to fill two board seats added as a result of the association’s expansion. Both Letizia and Peterson are Complex…
Briefly: Clinician Task Force Announces Incoming Executive Director; UHN to Start Neuralink Procedures
Featuring the Clinician Task Force and the University Health Network.
Tamara Kittelson to Become Executive Director of Clinician Task Force Tamara Kittelson, MS, OTR/L, ATP/SMS, will become executive director of the Clinician Task Force (CTF) in January. Current CTF Executive Director Cara E. Masselink, Ph.D., OTRL, ATP, HPCS, made the official announcement in a Dec. 10 bulletin, saying, “Tamara is an occupational therapist, RESNA-certified ATP/SMS,…
Pride Mobility Launches Jazzy Ultra Light Folding Power Wheelchair
The new power chair was designed to be easily transportable.
Pride Mobility’s newest transportable power wheelchair weighs just 33 lbs. without its battery. The foldable Jazzy Ultra Light has an all carbon-fiber frame “durable enough to withstand all your customers’ travels, but light enough to make every trip a cool breeze, whether through airports, on cruise ships, or just around the block,” Pride said in…
Noridian SMRC Announces Post-Payment Review of 2022-2023 Catheter Claims
The review involves HCPCS codes A4351, A4352 and A4353.
Noridian Healthcare Solutions, the Supplemental Medical Review Contractor (SMRC) for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), is conducting post-payment reviews of Medicare DME claims for intermittent urinary catheters with dates of service from Jan. 1, 2022, through Dec. 31, 2023. In its announcement, Noridian referenced a February Washington Post story, “US Investigates Alleged…
ITEM Coalition Sends 75/25 Reimbursement Rate Letter to Congressional Leaders
More than 30 advocacy organizations urged Congress to improve funding rates for home medical equipment.
The ITEM Coalition has sent a letter to Congressional leaders to urge their support for the reinstatement of the Medicare 75/25 blended reimbursement rate for home medical equipment. In a Dec. 2 letter, the ITEM Coalition noted that the expiration of the 75/25 reimbursement rate in January has hurt patient access to durable medical equipment…
CMS Wants to Prevent ‘Barriers to Care’ in Medicare Advantage Programs, Add Guardrails Around AI
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced policy changes last week.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is looking to further crack down on the companies that administer the privatized version of Medicare. On Nov. 26, CMS proposed new policies aimed at holding Medicare Advantage (MA) plans more accountable while removing “unnecessary barriers to care” for Medicare beneficiaries. The policies target “inappropriate” prior authorization…
Mobility Management Webinar: Exploring Eye Gaze’s Driving, Seating Opportunities
The Tolt Technologies-sponsored webinar is free to attend.
Operating a power wheelchair merely with the flick of an eye is no longer the stuff of science fiction. While clients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), muscular dystrophy, or other mobility-related conditions can lose the strength, stamina and muscle movements needed to use a traditional joystick, eye-gaze technology can make it possible to not just…
Commentary: Will New ‘Wicked’ Movie Defy Wheelchair Stereotypes?
For the first time, Nessarose, aka the Wicked Witch of the East, is portrayed by a real-life wheelchair rider.
I’ve always loved The Wizard of Oz movie (flying monkeys notwithstanding), and I’ve seen Wicked, the musical prequel about the unlikely friendship between Glinda/Galinda the Good Witch and Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, several times on stage. But I’ve always felt conflicted about Wicked because of how Elphaba’s sister, Nessarose, is portrayed. She’s…
Miller’s Celebrates 75th Anniversary
The company that began as a party supplies business has become one of the industry’s most venerable providers.
Miller’s Rentals and Sales is celebrating its diamond jubilee — 75 years of serving patients and their families in Akron, Ohio, and other communities in the state. A quick Encyclopedia Britannica search reveals how very different the world was in 1949, the year that Miller’s was founded. For context, Harry S. Truman was sworn in…