"I want to live alone, but want an affordable home safety system that can help me if I am unable to get to the phone and dial 911."
We have two pendant systems to choose from that will allow you to live alone, yet give you the peace of mind in the event you are disabled and cannot help yourself.
Both of our systems require you to wear a pendant at all times, and both can call 911 at the simple push of a button, no matter where you are in your home. These systems require NO monthly fee, the only expense is the initial purchase. Both are water resistant and easy to setup!
Guardian Alert 911 allows you to speak directly through the pendant to a 911 operator. LO30911 - $159.07
Freedom Alert allows you to speak directly through the pendant to four different phone numbers. Call family, friends, neighbors and of course a 911 operator. This sytems allows you call someone other than emergency services if your issue is not life-threatening. LO35911 - $270.93
Friday, October 28, 2011
Monday, October 24, 2011
"Why Don't You Take Medicare/Medicaid?"
As a medical supply provider, we get asked the question "Why don't you take Medicare/Medicaid?".
A little over two years ago, we made the very difficult decision to exit our relationship with CMS, or Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, which is the US federal agency which administers Medicare, Medicaid. At that time, in an effort to reduce fraud, CMS was requiring providers to become "Accredited", which is a very lengthy and expensive process. For larger chain providers, this was not as big of an issue, but for mom-n-pop shops such as ourselves, this was a daunting task.
Couple the accreditation requirements adding substantial overhead, with the already low reimbursement rates, and it simply no longer made business sense.
As the years have come and gone, the government has added competitive bidding to the requirments for some areas of the nation. In an effort to reduce spending by streamlining vendors and subsequent billing, suppliers - and by suppliers we mean BIG suppliers - have to submit and win a bid to supply certain areas of consumers with DME products that are paid for by the government. Again, this was an issue for mom-n-pop shops and we were simply squeezed out because of the format provided to those that wanted to submit a bid.
Just last week, HME News, the business newspaper for the home medical equipment provders, discovered that accredited providers were potentially having to go through the accreditation process all over again. Why? Because, "WellPoint, a health plan that owns and administers Blue Cross Blue Shield plans in 14 states, has notified providers in Georgia that to remain part of its network, they must be accredited by one of only three accreditation agencies by March 1, 2012."*
This is a huge blow for two reasons.
For one, CMS gave a list of ten accreditation agencies for providers to obtain accreditation from. This means that if a provider chose one that is NOT one of the three WellPoint has approved, a provider has to switch accreditation agencies. It is unknown what that process entails, since nobody anticipated any reason to have to switch. And as stated previously, this is a very lengthy and expensive process, especially for a small mom-n-pop shop.
Second, WellPoint has only notified Georgia providers, but their industry stakeholders say that this is a "national policy". If they successfully make this a national policy, it opens the door for other healthcare plans to require suppliers to change their accreditations as well.
How does this effect you, the consumer? Several ways, actually. If you enjoy buying your Medicare/Medicaid products locally, these requirements will ensure that mom-n-pop shops can no longer provide them. Most smaller suppliers are interested in providing quality over quantity, which means lesser quality products will be the only option for Medicare/Medicaid recipients. Also, it is widely known in the industry that one of the biggest issues with these changes is service. If your wheelchair malfunctions, service and repairs will be very difficult to find.
Accusations that corporations are making money hand over fist is false. Several of our local competitors have closed their doors in the past few years. In this economy with these requirments, its survival of the biggest corporation, not survival of the fittest (or best). And unfortunately, we feel its the consumers that will suffer.
*HME News, November 2011, Accreditation: Medicare's requirement not foolproof by Liz Beaulieu
A little over two years ago, we made the very difficult decision to exit our relationship with CMS, or Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, which is the US federal agency which administers Medicare, Medicaid. At that time, in an effort to reduce fraud, CMS was requiring providers to become "Accredited", which is a very lengthy and expensive process. For larger chain providers, this was not as big of an issue, but for mom-n-pop shops such as ourselves, this was a daunting task.
Couple the accreditation requirements adding substantial overhead, with the already low reimbursement rates, and it simply no longer made business sense.
As the years have come and gone, the government has added competitive bidding to the requirments for some areas of the nation. In an effort to reduce spending by streamlining vendors and subsequent billing, suppliers - and by suppliers we mean BIG suppliers - have to submit and win a bid to supply certain areas of consumers with DME products that are paid for by the government. Again, this was an issue for mom-n-pop shops and we were simply squeezed out because of the format provided to those that wanted to submit a bid.
Just last week, HME News, the business newspaper for the home medical equipment provders, discovered that accredited providers were potentially having to go through the accreditation process all over again. Why? Because, "WellPoint, a health plan that owns and administers Blue Cross Blue Shield plans in 14 states, has notified providers in Georgia that to remain part of its network, they must be accredited by one of only three accreditation agencies by March 1, 2012."*
This is a huge blow for two reasons.
For one, CMS gave a list of ten accreditation agencies for providers to obtain accreditation from. This means that if a provider chose one that is NOT one of the three WellPoint has approved, a provider has to switch accreditation agencies. It is unknown what that process entails, since nobody anticipated any reason to have to switch. And as stated previously, this is a very lengthy and expensive process, especially for a small mom-n-pop shop.
Second, WellPoint has only notified Georgia providers, but their industry stakeholders say that this is a "national policy". If they successfully make this a national policy, it opens the door for other healthcare plans to require suppliers to change their accreditations as well.
How does this effect you, the consumer? Several ways, actually. If you enjoy buying your Medicare/Medicaid products locally, these requirements will ensure that mom-n-pop shops can no longer provide them. Most smaller suppliers are interested in providing quality over quantity, which means lesser quality products will be the only option for Medicare/Medicaid recipients. Also, it is widely known in the industry that one of the biggest issues with these changes is service. If your wheelchair malfunctions, service and repairs will be very difficult to find.
Accusations that corporations are making money hand over fist is false. Several of our local competitors have closed their doors in the past few years. In this economy with these requirments, its survival of the biggest corporation, not survival of the fittest (or best). And unfortunately, we feel its the consumers that will suffer.
*HME News, November 2011, Accreditation: Medicare's requirement not foolproof by Liz Beaulieu
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Haunted Houses for Sale!
Here is a little Halloween fun for those with deep pockets and a love of being scared!
The LaLaurie Mansion, New Orleans, LA
Set for Auction November 12th!
Said to be one of the most haunted homes in NOLA, this home is owned by actor, Nicolas Cage, who never sleeps there, but occasionally has dinner parties. Originally built for French royalty, this mansion’s ghost stories start in the 1830’s with the LaLaurie family and their sadistic slave abuse. Appearing to be upstanding socialites, neighbors started to whisper about how the maids and stable boys would be replaced frequently, and then never seen again! Ghost stories and sightings such as seeing shackled servants roaming the halls, started almost as soon as the LaLauries fled the city.
The Pickfair Estate, Beverly Hills, CA
Asking only $60 Million!
Originally built as a hunting cabin in the 1920’s for silent film stars Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, this Hollywood home is said to have a resident ghost, even though the original home is no longer standing. The cabin was transformed into a 22 room mansion, and when the couple divorced in 1936, Pickford remained in the home until her death in 1979. In 1988, Israeli businessman Meshulam Reklis tore the mansion down and built the property as it stands today. Legend says Pickford’s ghost pops up waiting to reconcile with Fairbanks, also spotted on the property.
Howsham Hall, York, North Yorkshire
Asking $9.84 Million!
This home in England is more than 400 years old and features 7 beautifully restored bedrooms and over 80 acres of rolling land. But, according to local lore, the house has a so-called curse, known as the “Curse of Kirkham”. When Sir William Bamburgh built the hall in 1610, he used wood and stone from Kirkham Priory, a destroyed religious community. Considered sacrilege by many, a curse was said to have been put on Howsham Hall and its owners: All male heirs will perish, and the owner’s family will never be happy. Are you willing to risk living in a cursed home?
Source: http://www.frontdoor.com/buy/surreal-estate-6-spooky-homes-for-sale
The LaLaurie Mansion, New Orleans, LA
Set for Auction November 12th!
Said to be one of the most haunted homes in NOLA, this home is owned by actor, Nicolas Cage, who never sleeps there, but occasionally has dinner parties. Originally built for French royalty, this mansion’s ghost stories start in the 1830’s with the LaLaurie family and their sadistic slave abuse. Appearing to be upstanding socialites, neighbors started to whisper about how the maids and stable boys would be replaced frequently, and then never seen again! Ghost stories and sightings such as seeing shackled servants roaming the halls, started almost as soon as the LaLauries fled the city.
The Pickfair Estate, Beverly Hills, CA
Asking only $60 Million!
Originally built as a hunting cabin in the 1920’s for silent film stars Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, this Hollywood home is said to have a resident ghost, even though the original home is no longer standing. The cabin was transformed into a 22 room mansion, and when the couple divorced in 1936, Pickford remained in the home until her death in 1979. In 1988, Israeli businessman Meshulam Reklis tore the mansion down and built the property as it stands today. Legend says Pickford’s ghost pops up waiting to reconcile with Fairbanks, also spotted on the property.
Howsham Hall, York, North Yorkshire
Asking $9.84 Million!
This home in England is more than 400 years old and features 7 beautifully restored bedrooms and over 80 acres of rolling land. But, according to local lore, the house has a so-called curse, known as the “Curse of Kirkham”. When Sir William Bamburgh built the hall in 1610, he used wood and stone from Kirkham Priory, a destroyed religious community. Considered sacrilege by many, a curse was said to have been put on Howsham Hall and its owners: All male heirs will perish, and the owner’s family will never be happy. Are you willing to risk living in a cursed home?
Source: http://www.frontdoor.com/buy/surreal-estate-6-spooky-homes-for-sale
Monday, October 17, 2011
A nurse’s subconscious mind
by Sean Dent • September 1, 2011
There are just some things non-nursing folks will never understand. It’s not a ‘knock’ against those who are not a nurse, really it’s not. What I’m talking about is how your brain gets ‘re-wired’ once you become a nurse. I don’t know if it happened overnight? Maybe it happened gradually over the past half decade? What I do know is my mind thinks and processes things SO differently than it did prior to being a nurse. I wonder… am I brainwashed??
Here’s what being a nurse can do to the mind!
* At the restaurant, we silently hope that the person choking at the table next to us doesn’t need assistance – yet, if they do, we’ll be the first to run to their side.
* Walking through the fog of a public ‘smokers break area,’ we all want to reach out and smack you. Do you want to die breathing through a tube?
* While phlegm doesn’t normally bother (most) of us at work, the sight or sound of you hacking up a lung in public really does bother us. Especially when you don’t cover your mouth!!!
* Public restrooms. Yes – there is nothing sanitary about them most of the time. What we can’t stand is witnessing someone use these facilities and then walk out without washing their hands! (How am I supposed to pull the door open and exit the bathroom without contaminating my hand??)
* For some strange reason, we can never look at another person’s arms the same ever again. Every time we see a good vein? Yep, you guessed it. We think to ourselves, “Wow! I could start a #16 gauge needle in there!” Sorry.
* We continue to micro-analyze anything on TV or in the theater that has a shred of health care related activities. “Oh yeah, THAT would happen,” has echoed through our minds one too many times.
* To this very day, I think we all have been cursed with measurements. We subconsciously measure how much we’ve urinated, how many CC’s of fluid we drank and, of course, how many carbs were in our meals.
* While on vacation – no matter the geographic location – we somehow ‘notate’ and remember where the closest emergency room and hospital are located.
* I’m not sure if it’s just a nursing thing, I think paramedics share this curse, too. We carry a spare set of scrubs stored in our vehicles, along with old ‘not in use’ equipment like stethoscopes, pen lights and scissors.
* We shake our heads at those wonderful ‘blood pressure screening stations’ located throughout the supermarkets and discount stores. Ahahaha! I think we are more troubled by the fact that the public believe these measurements to be accurate.
* We still (often) forget that it’s not common practice to talk about blood, bodily functions and bodily fluids as a discussion topic during a meal. Again, sorry.
* Yes, we find humor in the most disgusting and disturbing things sometimes (OK, all the time). I’d like to think it’s our defense mechanism for making sure we don’t drive ourselves crazy and burn out.
This just scrapes the surface of what goes on behind the doors of our minds. I continue to convince myself that I’m not brainwashed, but that I have been trained and educated to always ‘be prepared’. I have to admit though, sometimes you have to wonder…
(That was a joke folks)
There are just some things non-nursing folks will never understand. It’s not a ‘knock’ against those who are not a nurse, really it’s not. What I’m talking about is how your brain gets ‘re-wired’ once you become a nurse. I don’t know if it happened overnight? Maybe it happened gradually over the past half decade? What I do know is my mind thinks and processes things SO differently than it did prior to being a nurse. I wonder… am I brainwashed??
Here’s what being a nurse can do to the mind!
* At the restaurant, we silently hope that the person choking at the table next to us doesn’t need assistance – yet, if they do, we’ll be the first to run to their side.
* Walking through the fog of a public ‘smokers break area,’ we all want to reach out and smack you. Do you want to die breathing through a tube?
* While phlegm doesn’t normally bother (most) of us at work, the sight or sound of you hacking up a lung in public really does bother us. Especially when you don’t cover your mouth!!!
* Public restrooms. Yes – there is nothing sanitary about them most of the time. What we can’t stand is witnessing someone use these facilities and then walk out without washing their hands! (How am I supposed to pull the door open and exit the bathroom without contaminating my hand??)
* For some strange reason, we can never look at another person’s arms the same ever again. Every time we see a good vein? Yep, you guessed it. We think to ourselves, “Wow! I could start a #16 gauge needle in there!” Sorry.
* We continue to micro-analyze anything on TV or in the theater that has a shred of health care related activities. “Oh yeah, THAT would happen,” has echoed through our minds one too many times.
* To this very day, I think we all have been cursed with measurements. We subconsciously measure how much we’ve urinated, how many CC’s of fluid we drank and, of course, how many carbs were in our meals.
* While on vacation – no matter the geographic location – we somehow ‘notate’ and remember where the closest emergency room and hospital are located.
* I’m not sure if it’s just a nursing thing, I think paramedics share this curse, too. We carry a spare set of scrubs stored in our vehicles, along with old ‘not in use’ equipment like stethoscopes, pen lights and scissors.
* We shake our heads at those wonderful ‘blood pressure screening stations’ located throughout the supermarkets and discount stores. Ahahaha! I think we are more troubled by the fact that the public believe these measurements to be accurate.
* We still (often) forget that it’s not common practice to talk about blood, bodily functions and bodily fluids as a discussion topic during a meal. Again, sorry.
* Yes, we find humor in the most disgusting and disturbing things sometimes (OK, all the time). I’d like to think it’s our defense mechanism for making sure we don’t drive ourselves crazy and burn out.
This just scrapes the surface of what goes on behind the doors of our minds. I continue to convince myself that I’m not brainwashed, but that I have been trained and educated to always ‘be prepared’. I have to admit though, sometimes you have to wonder…
(That was a joke folks)
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Fall 2011 New Arrivals - Cherokee & Dickies
Oh these are so wonderful! You have GOT to come check these out!
We have brought in the new Dickies solid line, Youtility. There are three top styles, mock wrap, v-neck and a three button v-neck. The pant is very versatile and all of them have great detail! These are not your average solid scrubs!
Priced from $26.49 to $32.99.
Click HERE to shop Dickies Youtility and other Dickies items.
And here is just a preview of our New Fall Arrivals:
Click HERE to shop all of our new fall arrivals now!
We have brought in the new Dickies solid line, Youtility. There are three top styles, mock wrap, v-neck and a three button v-neck. The pant is very versatile and all of them have great detail! These are not your average solid scrubs!
Priced from $26.49 to $32.99.
Click HERE to shop Dickies Youtility and other Dickies items.
And here is just a preview of our New Fall Arrivals:
Click HERE to shop all of our new fall arrivals now!
Friday, October 7, 2011
Life in the Blogsphere
As a blogger, there are a handfull of other bloggers that I follow - not many, just a handful. I only know one of the bloggers personally, so the others are basically strangers to me and they are randomly spaced out across the United States.
I follow other bloggers because they provide inspiration to me, for this blog. Most all of them are wonderful writers. Some are funny, some are political and some are just living life and documenting via their blogs, as a source of emotional outlet.
This blog mainly serves as a business outlet, with a little bit of interesting and personal stuff on the side. Nobody really likes all business, do they?
Our blog was "quiet" this week because I was out of the office for a few days - my husband had to have an apendectomy. They are fairly routine now, with new removal methods he literally went to work the day after his hospital discharge, for a few hours. While this turned out to be a bump in the road, it made me reflect, appreciate and be grateful for our life as it is. This medical scare turned out ok. Whew.
One blogger I follow had a baby last week. Her life has certainly changed in a big way! Her writing is amazing, even when she is very sleep deprived. I am happy for her and even though I dont know her, I wish her well.
Another blogger I follow suddenly and heartbreakingly lost her 28 year old son. I follow her because she is retired and talks about life as a senior citizen. Her son was engaged, working a good job, settling down and living life as most Americans do. Then one night, he got in an altercation and a single punch to the face ended his life.
Life can change in an instant. It can provide happiness. It can give you a bump in the road. It can alter you and your life in an instant.
I follow other bloggers because they provide inspiration to me, for this blog. Most all of them are wonderful writers. Some are funny, some are political and some are just living life and documenting via their blogs, as a source of emotional outlet.
This blog mainly serves as a business outlet, with a little bit of interesting and personal stuff on the side. Nobody really likes all business, do they?
Our blog was "quiet" this week because I was out of the office for a few days - my husband had to have an apendectomy. They are fairly routine now, with new removal methods he literally went to work the day after his hospital discharge, for a few hours. While this turned out to be a bump in the road, it made me reflect, appreciate and be grateful for our life as it is. This medical scare turned out ok. Whew.
One blogger I follow had a baby last week. Her life has certainly changed in a big way! Her writing is amazing, even when she is very sleep deprived. I am happy for her and even though I dont know her, I wish her well.
Another blogger I follow suddenly and heartbreakingly lost her 28 year old son. I follow her because she is retired and talks about life as a senior citizen. Her son was engaged, working a good job, settling down and living life as most Americans do. Then one night, he got in an altercation and a single punch to the face ended his life.
Life can change in an instant. It can provide happiness. It can give you a bump in the road. It can alter you and your life in an instant.
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