Archive - August 2016

90-days Until New OT Rule is Enforced: Are you ready? By Jeff Rummel, Controller and Vice President of Accounting, VGM Group, Inc. With only three months remaining before the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) final rule revising the “white collar” overtime exemption takes effect, businesses throughout the country should be preparing for the significant changes coming their way. On May 18, 2016, the DOL issued updates to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) overtime provisions.

Breast cancer patients in the U.S. now have new surgical option that offers flexible alternative for cancer detection Breast cancer patients in the U.S. will have a new surgical option that eliminates exposure to radioactive materials and offers a less invasive, more flexible alternative for cancer detection. Receiving FDA approval in April and a distribution deal this month, the new device will be used to locate early stage tumors that cannot yet be felt. Co-invented by University of Houston

Melatonin appears to suppress growth of breast cancer stem cells Melatonin, a hormone produced in the human brain, appears to suppress the growth of breast cancer tumors. Researchers at Michigan State University published this finding in the current issue of Genes and Cancer. While treatments based on this key discovery are still years away, the results give scientists a key foundation on which to build future research. "You can watch bears in the zoo, but you only understand bear behavior

Nowhere to hide: Reimbursement cuts multiply   ‘We cannot survive’ wrote one poll respondent by: Liz Beaulieu YARMOUTH, Maine – Third-party payers have wasted no time applying recently reduced Medicare pricing, respondents to the latest HME Newspoll say. Eighty-one percent of respondents say new Medicare pricing that went into effect this year—in rural areas on Jan. 1 and July 1, and in Round 2 re-compete areas

New Surgery Guidelines for Breast Cancer Patients 2 millimeters is enough to guard against recurrences while reducing need for additional surgeries WebMD News from HealthDay   By Robert Preidt HealthDay Reporter FRIDAY, Aug. 12, 2016 (HealthDay News) -- New surgery guidelines for certain breast cancer patients could reduce both unnecessary surgeries and recurrence rates, three U.S. cancer groups say. The guideline is for treatment of women with ductal carcinoma in situ

Autologous versus Prosthetic Breast Reconstruction By Susha Cheriyedath, MSc Following a mastectomy, breast reconstruction may be performed using (1) prosthetic implants made of either saline or silicone or (2) autologous tissue, which means tissue taken from elsewhere in the patient’s body. Today, prosthetic reconstructions are more popular than autologous reconstruction. Autologous Breast Reconstruction In autologous breast reconstruction, a portion of tissue possessing its

Two New Drugs Show Promise for Patients with Aggressive Breast Cancer Results from I-SPY 2 Study May Lead to Smaller, Faster and More Focused Phase 3 Trials of New Therapies for Patients with Triple-Negative and HER2-Positive Breast Cancer PHILADELPHIA – Patients with aggressive subtypes of locally-advanced breast cancer may have new treatment options on the horizon, according to two reports published in July in the New England Journal of Medicine. Results of two different investigational

Non-Assigned vs. Assigned: What You Need to Know By Ronda Buhrmester, VGM Reimbursement An assignment agreement is between a supplier and a Medicare beneficiary. The option of accepting assignment belongs solely to the supplier. Suppliers have a choice to become a participating or non-participating Medicare supplier. Suppliers can change their participation status annually. Participation status is part of the enrollment process through the National Supplier Clearinghouse (NSC). Participation