Page 12 - HME Business, January/February 2021

Business Solutions
14TH ANNUAL
COVID-19 continues to impact the industry as we roll into 2021. Our annual Big 10 list explains its impact, as well as other factors impacting providers this year.
By David Kopf
Image © mraoraor/ depositphotos.com
t the start of each year, we take some time to sign- post 10 key trends or busi- ness factors that providers will need to deal with in the year to come and offer
some insights that will help them make a plan. We’ve seen a lot of major trends play out over past editions — competitive bidding, audits, oxygen’s rental cap, retail sales, the increasing use of software, just to name a few — but we’ve never had a year where one trend has influ- enced the others.
Enter COVID-19. As we’ve seen over the course of 2020, the pandemic wormed its way into just about every protocol, procedure, plan and practice a provider could put into place. And, not surprisingly, that trend will play out in 2021. That said, it won’t be the only trend that will affect providers this year, but it will play a role in just about every trend impacting 2021.
So, for this 14th annual edition of the HMEB Big 10, we’ll examine:
1. The Vaccine Roll-Out
2. Business and Care Protocols
3.Telehealth
4. Virtual Events & Education
5. Accreditation Renewal
6. Provider Sales
7. Sequester Pause
8. Oxygen Supplies and Services
9. CMS’s Round 2021 Punt
10. Payer-Provider Convergence
THE VACCINE ROLL-OUT
The big question on everyone’s mind is exactly when will the nation get vaccinated so we can return to real life. If right now represents a “new normal,” every American, and every citizen of the world, wants to get back to the “old normal” that doesn’t involve masks, social distancing, and Zoom meetings.
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