"New" Year Approaching

What does the New Year hold for our industry? I have given this question a great deal of thought. How will 2011 be different from this year?

I do not have an accurate figure of how many providers submitted bids nor how many have been awarded. I do know that there will not be an adequate number of providers available to supply all the recipients. I also am concerned and have some serious questions about some of the providers who were winners.

Here are some of the doubts that I have. Will there be a sufficient number of providers located in many of the smaller villages and towns whose patients have always been receiving excellent service locally? One answer I received is that beneficiaries can get their supplies from providers outside their home base, such as prescriptions being provided by mail order. Won’t that be a comfort for senior citizens and their family caregivers?

Another is how many of the winners have gone out of business since they submitted their bids and others who are now contemplating bankruptcy? There is another side to this coin. Do many existing providers face such a dire future in 2011? Is there any logic in limiting the number of companies to supply every needy patient? There is a schedule of fees (HCPCS) for all providers to receive a “fair” reimbursement. Why reduce the number of dealers?

I can go on and on. There should be a license to become a provider, which can be suspended or revoked. There must be inspections showing the providers meet specific standards. There should be training, such as that pharmacy techs obtain, for employees. These are some of the controls, which should be in place.

The country now suffers with nearly 10% of the work force unemployed. How many more people will be put out of work? Small businesses, like HME providers provide jobs and are taxpayers.

Now is the time for providers and dealers to march in unison to change these negative considerations. That can be done in conjunction with AAHomecare and your state HME association. Build OTC cash sales, become aggressive merchants! I am always available to answer any questions (877-553-5127). I want to see every provider grow in 2011.

Medtrade Report II

It was very interesting to tour the Medtrade NextGen Accessible Home display on the Medtrade showroom floor. Today most HME providers are seeking cash sale OTC items. This was clearly visible as the attendees made their rounds to visit as many vendors as possible.

Most senior citizens want to live in their own homes. This is a major consideration for our industry. The bulk of the senior Americans today have available the discretionary dollars to obtain those items for their comfort! Family caregivers are making every effort to see that all aids to daily living items are there for Mom and Pop. They do not want to see their parents institutionalized or placed in a long-term care facility.

The NextGen team put together a fabulous display. There was a real house set up on the showroom floor! A map was provided to guide the guests through the house. About forty manufacturers of specialty items had their products set up in the appropriate room. Everything displayed was ideal for OTC cash sales.

Starting at the outside entrance and exit were special ramps. Whether the homeowner needed a wheelchair or a walking aid, there was something available for them. Then, starting in the living room, going to the kitchen, checking the master and guest bathrooms, seeing the utility room and finishing in the master and guest bedrooms, they were all filled with great potential cash sales.

Visiting the NextGen home, attendees saw products ranging from lifts, monitors, bath safety, beds and mattresses, telephones, dispensers, footwear and more. This was one of exhibits that dramatically showed how to go after new cash sales!

If you can rearrange your company showroom to set up display “rooms,” they will become magnets to bring in new traffic. Promote OTC products and make your company a Mecca, a place where people will want to go!

Medtrade Report I

Wow! As the Medtrade meeting drew to a close, I took the opportunity to speak with many HME providers from all parts of the country. Everyone was excited and pleased with the new opportunities they discovered on the showroom floor. They all gave me basically the same message: “This year, Medtrade was not just another meeting but one where we found OTHER new ideas and are able to make plans for the future of our company.” Both the attendees and the exhibitors were all well aware of how the economy is changing and the need for the health care industry to adapt to remain viable.


The opening speaker, Dr. Clifford Schorer, Columbia University Business School, laid the groundwork as he discussed the challenges to the industry. He emphasized using current technology and developing new ideas. He gave several examples of how companies have done this. Dr. Schorer told the attendees that they, too, must take advantage of the fact that people today have i-pads and other technological means of communication. What an eye-opener! What an opportunity!

This year most attendees came by themselves or with a key employee. Attendance was up and all of the providers and their staff were busy viewing the exhibits to find new means of increasing their OTC cash sales.

The NextGen Medtrade Accessible Home, located in the corner of the exhibition hall, attracted almost every attendee. The flow of providers walking through saw more 40 exhibits showing new OTC cash sale appliances. How they can bring these to their elderly and disabled customers when they returned to their home base was accomplished. Travelers from all over the country just to see this “Accessible Home” thought it made the worthwhile. All enjoyed the tour and each came away with new ideas!

There is much more to report and the next few blogs I will talk about these. I would like to know what you took home from Medtrade this year. Please contact me
(877-553-5127 or shelly.prial@att.net) and share some of what you discovered at the meeting, some highlights and perhaps how you can implement these thoughts. Every provider has to work together and then I will be able to see you all again next year at Medtrade! Yes, all I can say is “wow.”

Post-election Action Items

The votes have been tallied. It makes little difference now if the person you supported did or did not win. Either way you should do the following things.

Send a congratulatory letter to the winner. If the incumbent is still in office, say how happy you are about the results. Now is the time for you to work even harder with that person on the legislative issues that affect our industry.

If it is someone new, then you must establish communication ASAP. A letter introducing yourself and your company to the victor is very important. They must know who you are, what your business is and how many employees and customers (be subtle) you have. These are all voters!

Try to make an appointment for a personal visit before they head off to DC or to the state capitol. Be sure you get to speak to the legislator. This will prove to be the most important thing you can do. Nothing works better than a “face-to-face” discussion. It is a “first-come, first-served,” approach and has always proven to be valuable.

Leave your business card and get the name of their health legislative assistant (HLA). You want to meet that person. The HLA is your entry to the office. They are able to keep you apprised of things that affect our industry. The state and national associations will provide you with all the tools necessary for the HLA to bring to the official. That is their task.

Why You Have to Be at Medtrade

There are a great number of problems facing HME providers today. Attendance at Medtrade will enable you and your company to get many ideas and directions to help resolve them. If you have not registered, please visit wwww.medtrade.com and do so now. Your future may depend on it.

At this moment, with the election coming next week, the pressure on most Congressmen seems to be who will be elected and who will be sent out to pasture. The amount of dollars being spent this year by both major parties is mind boggling. I must assume they all must see a big ROI for all the money they are investing.

For our industry, the main questions are:

Is the competitive program going to produce any positive results?
Are the reimbursements going to put many small operations out of business?
Will there be standards established or will everything be based on the lowest price only?

I assume the “lame duck” Congress that will remain in power after the election will not have the courage or drive to help resolve any of these. Our industry will stay in limbo until the new Congress is sworn in. But we cannot stop for an instant in getting to the incumbents and the new elected officials with all the information you can gather.

At Medtrade you will hear speakers who will provide excellent material for you to bring home. You will be able to meet with the officers and staff members of the state and national DME associations. They will arm you with tools to bring to Congress.

The buying groups who have been in the trenches, working not only for their members but for all the industry have much valuable information for you to bring home.

There is no other place where you can get so much to help guide your company through the wild waves. You have to be at Medtrade this year. If you have not yet registered, please do so STAT. I will be walking the floor. Please try to say “hello!” Thank you!

Time to Get Excited

As we get closer and closer to the opening of this year’s Medtrade Expo and educational conference in Atlanta, more and more excitement is growing. For each attendee a great crescendo will be reached as they enter the event.

How many vendors will they be able to visit? How many seminars and lectures can they attend? How many friends and associates will they meet? It is breathtaking for every HME provider to stand there in amazement as they see the plethora of opportunities that are awaiting them at Medtrade. There is so much sitting on the Expo floor and so many classrooms headed up by experts and professionals to provide guidance this year.

Make sure you attend those seminars this year that will provide new paths for your company to enter. There will be many vendors with new products, promotions and educational tools for your company – all waiting for you at Medtrade!

How to pick and choose from this cornucopia, overflowing with prospects for growth and profit will be a challenge. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg. This year providers will find a great deal more. At Medtrade providers will also see how they can protect themselves from some of the frightening legislations hanging over their heads.

Speakers, state HME associations, national associations, and the buying groups are all in attendance. You will get many new ideas to be sure your business gets through this so-called “recession.”

Try to find me walking the showroom floor. Please call if you have a free moment (877) 553-5127. Together we will share the excitement this year in Atlanta.

(If you have not registered, do so now at www.medtrade.com)

Medtrade: The Definitive Event

If you look back to the previous Medtrade events, one thing becomes very clear. Medtrade is the most definitive meeting HME providers can attend. This is where many problems can be resolved. Medtrade is where new ideas and new opportunities are always being presented.

Working with and listening to peers on the Expo floor and attending seminars help develop a rather large comfort level. As a consequence of this, attendees can absorb much more information to bring home with them.

What makes Medtrade so valuable? It is the most decisive stop on a provider’s road to success. There is no other venue where one can meet a multitude of vendors. It is where all the new products and OTC cash sales items are there to examine. You know your market and at Medtrade you can pick and choose those which fit into your operation.

I recall a Medtrade meeting, probably about 25 years or so ago where I first saw a chair stair glide that would take a person up or down a flight of stairs. It was, I thought at that time, rather an expensive over –the-counter item. However, the first day one was set up in a provider’s showroom, an elderly couple came in, saw the demo and was impressed. The sale was made and from that first sale, and from word of mouth, units were moving out regularly. Sales were also made to local churches. Yes, that is what Medtrade can do for you.

Continued growth and increased profits are what everyone seeks. At Medtrade the opportunities for both are found. I meet with many friends when I walk the showroom floor and I hear them describing Medtrade as the most perfect meeting they attend.

I look forward to hearing from you. I have received a number of exciting phone calls, so please do not hesitate to give me a shout. I apologize that I inadvertently gave a wrong digit in the last blog. There is space under the column where you can send comments, but a telephone call to (877) 553-5127 is always appreciated!