Leavitt Appoints Medicaid Advisory Commission Members
WASHINGTON--Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt has appointed 28 members to a committee that will advise the government on ways to slow the rapid growth of the Medicaid program. The Medicaid Advisory Commission--which was formed as a result of a 2006 budget compromise in Congress earlier this year--is made up of health policy leaders, state health department officials, public policy organizations, individuals with disabilities and others with special expertise.

Former Tennessee Gov. Don Sundquist will chair the commission, and former Maine Gov. Angus King will serve as vice chair.

On Sept. 1, the committee will submit its first report, which will suggest ways for Medicaid to save $10 billion in spending growth during the next five years. The group's final report, set for December, will focus on the long-term sustainability of the massive health care program, addressing issues such as ways to provide long-term care and how to expand coverage to more Americans while being fiscally responsible.

"I look forward to having a robust conversation in an open and bipartisan manner with the commission members," said Leavitt. "Together with Congress and the states, we will create a plan that will better help Medicaid fulfill its commitment to quality care in a way that is financially sustainable."

Of the 28 committee members, only 13 have voting rights. Leavitt also is holding open two spots for current governors so they can join after Sept. 1, when the commission begins to concentrate on long-term reform strategies.

The group will hold its first public meeting July 27 in Washington, D.C. Visit www.cms.hhs.gov/advisorycommittees for more information.

To view the commission's charter, click here.

To revisit this news any time during the week, go to http://www.homecaremonday.com.

Provider News
Rotech Reports First Quarter Results After Delay
ORLANDO, Fla.--After delaying the release of its first quarter financial results in May, last week Rotech Healthcare reported a net loss of $3 million for the first quarter of 2005. For the same quarter last year, the respiratory and DME provider reported net earnings of $9.1 million.

Net revenues for the first quarter, which ended March 31, were $123.3 million versus net revenues of $133 million in 2004.

After emerging from bankruptcy in 2003, Rotech announced earlier this year that it now has a "competitive cost structure in the marketplace" and is shifting its focus from turnaround activities to growing revenue and patient care.

"Significant time and investment has been, and will continue to be made in re-establishing growth and refocusing the company's culture towards patient care. The year has started well with six successive months of increases in the core oxygen patient count," said company President and CEO Philip L. Carter. Because of this growth, Carter said he expects to report higher revenue in the second quarter of 2005, despite oxygen reimbursement reductions of about 9 percent in April.

Four Convicted in $10 million DME Money-Laundering Scheme
MIAMI--A federal jury has convicted four Floridians in a complex money-laundering scheme involving DME and prescription drugs, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida announced.

According to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office:

Carlos Gonzalez, 45, of Miami, and Isabel Guerra, 39, of Hialeah Gardens, owners of United Pharmacy Discount and Ocean Medical Supplies, along with employees Pura Medina, 37, or Hialeah Gardens, and Isabel Canepa, 40, of Hialeah, paid kickbacks to patient recruiters for bringing in Medicare-eligible patients, and to patients themselves for the use of their names, identification numbers and prescriptions for DME and drugs.

Once they had patient information, the defendants completed Medicare-required orthotics measurement forms without ever having measured the patient, forged the signatures of doctors on DME prescriptions and created fraudulent patient files containing manufactured and forged documents.

The defendants then attempted to launder the proceeds through a person they believed was a professional money launderer--but who in fact was a cooperating witness working for federal agents and recording all of their transactions. By the end of the conspiracy, Medicare had paid the defendants $10 million.

The jury ordered forfeiture of that amount, as well as houses, boats, motorcycles and bank accounts. The investigation involved agents from the FBI and HHS.

Manufacturer News
Camp Acquires Seattle Systems
JACKSON, Miss.--Camp, a manufacturer of surgical supports and orthotic devices, has acquired Poulsbo, Wash.-based Seattle Systems, a manufacturer of orthopedic, prosthetic and physical rehabilitation products. Camp will continue to manufacture and ship products from Seattle Systems' production facility in Poulsbo.

Dj Orthopedics to Build New Headquarters
VISTA, Calif.--Dj orthopedics will break ground for its new headquarters building July 29, the company announced. The 111,000-square-foot facility, which will be located across the street from the 270,000-square-foot facility currently occupied by the company, is scheduled for completion in mid-2006. In recent years, Dj has relocated much of its manufacturing operations to Tijuana, Mexico, enabling the consolidation, according to a company release. The medical device manufacturer specializes in rehabilitation and regeneration products for the non-operative orthopedic and spine markets.

Inogen Wins Ernst & Young Award
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.--Inogen founders Byron Myers, Alison Perry, Brenton Taylor and CEO Kathy Odell were recently presented with an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award for the Greater Los Angeles area. The recipients, who were honored in the Emerging Growth category, were selected by an independent panel of judges made up of business and community leaders. Inogen and other winners in 31 regions around the country will be eligible for the organization's national awards, which will be presented in November.

In Brief
HHS is now accepting nominations for the American Health Information Community, a public-private collaboration that will recommend actions to accelerate the adoption of electronic health records and other health information technology. The panel will have 17 voting members, including government representatives and individuals from the private sector. Private sector members are to come from the following stakeholder groups: consumer and privacy interests, purchasers, third-party payers, hospitals, physicians, nurses, ancillary services and information technology vendors. To be considered, send a one-page letter summarizing your qualifications by Aug. 5 to onchit.request@hhs.gov fax to (202) 690-6079 or mail to ONCHIT c/o Mari Johnson, Department of Health and Human Services, 200 Independence Ave, Suite 517D, Washington, D.C. 20201. To view the draft charter for the community, click here.

Most Americans are reluctant to cut Medicaid, even though they believe most state budgets are facing major problems, according to a public opinion survey released by the Kaiser Family Foundation. The survey found that 52 percent strongly oppose and 22 percent somewhat oppose cutting Medicaid to balance their state's budgets. "We expected Medicaid to be relatively unpopular with the public, much like welfare was. But we found that Medicaid ranks closer to popular programs like Medicare and Social Security in the public's mind," said Mollyann Brodie, vice president and director of public opinion and media research for the foundation. For the full results, click here.

The Administration on Aging has awarded $9.4 million to 64 Senior Medicare Patrol projects to help beneficiaries spot fraud and unintended billing errors. The projects teach volunteer retired professionals to help Medicare and Medicaid recipients be more savvy health care consumers. Since 1997, the projects and other AoA grants have educated more than two million beneficiaries, according to an AoA release. Of the more than 47,000 complaints that were reported by beneficiaries, the release added, 4,365 were referred for action and investigated, resulting in $104.2 million in savings to Medicare and Medicaid. For more information on the Senior Medicare Patrol program, visit www.aoa.gov/smp.

Newsmakers
Dale LaPorte is joining Elyria, Ohio-based Invacare Corp. as senior vice president of business development and general counsel. LaPort, currently a partner at Cleveland-based Calfee, Halter & Griswold, will be responsible for all legal affairs, risk management, mergers and acquisitions and regulatory affairs.

Bob Wardwell has been appointed to serve on the board of directors for Community Health Accreditation Program (CHAP). Wardwell is vice president of regulatory and public affairs at Visiting Nurse Associations of America.

Coming Up
CMS will hold a teleconference on HIPAA administrative simplification enforcement Wednesday at 1 p.m. EDT. To participate, call (877) 203-0044 15 minutes before the start time and provide conference ID 7529432.

CMS has scheduled its next Home Health, Hospice and DME Open Door Forum Wednesday at 2 p.m. EDT. To participate by phone, call (800) 837-1935 and reference conference ID 2865477.

CMS will hold a Special Open Door Forum on personal health records Thursday at 2 p.m. EDT. To participate by phone, call (800) 837-1935 and reference conference ID 6586606.

Dynamic Seminars & Consulting will hold a teleconference on retail selling strategies Tuesday and a teleconference on understanding the case manager July 28. For more information, call (954) 435-8182 or visit www.dynamicseminars.com.

The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) will hold its Financial Management Conference Wednesday through Saturday in San Diego. For more information, call (202) 547-7424 or visit www.nahc.org.

The United Ostomy Association will hold its National Conference Aug. 3-6 in Anaheim, Calif. For more information, call (800) 826-0826 or visit www.uoa.org.

VGM Learn will take place Aug. 9 in Denver. For more information, call (888) 797-8672 or visit www.vgm.com.

The National Registry of Rehabilitation Technology Suppliers (NRRTS) will hold an educational conference Aug. 10-13 in St. Louis. For more information, visit (512) 267-6832 or visit www.nrrts.org.

The Florida International Medical Expo (FIME) will take place Aug. 17-19 in Miami. For more information, call (941) 366-2554 or visit www.fimeshow.com.

Visit this week's sponsor at www.remitdata.com.