VGM Speaker Bureau

Mike's responsibilities include leadership of all executive, financial and human resource matters at VGM Group. He works with all divisions of the company on strategy, development and M&A activity. Mike joined VGM in 2001. Prior to VGM, Mike was the CFO for a regional retail chain where he was part of an executive team that successfully turned around a bankrupt company. He spent the first twelve years of his career as a CPA with the accounting firm Deloitte, where his work included financial reporting, auditing, initial public offerings, SEC registration statements, operational and reorganization consulting, and project management.

Topics

• HME Success Strategies
• The future of HME
• HME Financial results and benchmarking
• HME Retail

John oversees key government and regulatory affairs that pertain to the HME industry. He has traveled thousands of miles to educate both state associations and independent providers on regulatory and government issues. Additionally, John has worked tirelessly with independent providers and state associations to promote the HME industry, while advocating for beneficiaries' access to quality care.

Topics

• Competitive bidding
• Regulatory issues relating to all Home Medical Equipment
• Legislative updates
• In-District / State Congressional “Meet n Greet” Meetings (set up and attendance assistance
• Fraud and abuse
• Federal and State Grassroots / Advocacy Development
• VA/GSA Contracting
• Federal PAC development
• Understanding and complying with the DME supplier standards and quality standards
• HIPAA/HITECH Act, NPI and PECOS Issues
• Audits and regulatory changes: hot button issues facing HME providers

Legislative, regulatory, reimbursement, and other market uncertainties continue to hinder the near and long term strategies of home medical equipment providers. Overall, HME operators seem to have acknowledged a less than secure future. While demographics and other indicators remain favorable, many HME businesses will have to retool and retrain to deal with Capitol Hill and new Rulemaking. This session will detail various HME metrics and trends utilizing data from national, regional and independent providers in conjunction with official NHE estimates of DMEPOS demand in all sectors.

Topics

• Legal & Regulatory Issues/Update
• 2017 & Beyond: Hot Button Issues Facing HME Providers
• Health Care Reform & HME
• Non-Assignment Options
• Competitive Bidding (includes versions specific to subcontracting, preparing a bid, grandfathering, etc.)
• Rural Application of National Competitive Bidding Reimbursement
• Options for “acquiring” a competitive bid contract
• Mergers, Acquisitions and Valuation Update
• An Industry in Transition:  Hot Button Issues for DMEPOS Suppliers
• Strategies to successfully navigate CMS reimbursement cuts. 
• HME & Fraud Issues
• Industry Demographics & Trends
• OIG Work Plan
• Current Rulemaking & HME

Wayne van Halem founded The van Halem Group in 2006. The Atlanta-based firm merged with VGM Group in 2014 and Wayne currently serves as its President as they assist providers navigate complex issues related to audits, appeals, enrollment, and compliance. As a CMS contractor for 10 years, he spent a majority of that time as a fraud investigator and national Appeals Director. Wayne is also a published author and well-known lecturer. He is an Accredited Healthcare Fraud Investigator through the National Health Care Anti-fraud Association (NHCAA); a Certified Fraud Examiner through the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), and an active member of the Health Care Compliance Association (HCCA). He has served on the faculty for each of these national organizations. He also sits on the American Association for Homecare’s Regulatory Council, Medtrade’s Educational Advisory Board, Medicare DME MAC Jurisdiction D Advisory Council, Advisory Board for HME Business Magazine, and Board of Directors for Friends of Disabled Adults and Children (FODAC) and the Georgia Association of Medical Equipment Suppliers. He has also served as an expert in various criminal and civil proceedings. Since 2006, his company has saved clients over $100 million in overpayments and denial recoveries.

Topics

• Audits
• Appeals
• Compliance Programs
• Compliance Issues
• Regulatory Issues
• Enrollment Issues
• Medicare Policy
• Industry Updates
• Alternative Payment Arrangements

Kelly Grahovac serves as the General Manager for The van Halem Group where she focuses on audits, appeals, education and training, and business development. Kelly is a known lecturer in the DME industry, speaking at national conferences, state associations, and for private events. Kelly has nearly 10 years of experience at one of the nation’s leading Medicare contractors where she worked for the Durable Medical Equipment Regional Carrier (DMERC), Qualified Independent Contractor (QIC), and A/B Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC). Her various roles with Medicare include working as a senior provider relations representative, QIC Adjudicator and Training Specialist. Kelly has in-depth knowledge in Medicare appeals, policy and education and training. In addition to her client work at The van Halem Group, Kelly is also a contributor to several industry publications nationally.

Topics

• Audits
• Appeals
• Compliance Programs
• Compliance Issues
• Regulatory Issues
• Enrollment Issues
• Medicare Policy
• Industry Updates

Jay Bracken, CISSP, is the Information Security Officer for the VGM Group, the nation’s largest Member Service Organization for post-acute care, where he continues to evolve a comprehensive Information Security Program. With over 13 years of Cybersecurity experience, Jay has leveraged his extensive technical and business operation experience to apply sound IT Security practices while supporting the complex, highly-regulated business requirements of the healthcare industry. He is also responsible for the development and coordination of VGM’s strategic IT security planning and business continuity initiatives to reduce risks, respond to incidents, and limit exposure to liability that may result in financial and image loss to the organization.

Topics

• Cybersecurity 101 for small/medium businesses
• Current Cybersecurity trends
• Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery
• Pandemic Preparedness

Jeremy Kauten, chief information officer and senior vice president of information technology at VGM Group, Inc., has spent his entire career in the cyberworld. He currently focuses on protecting computers, networks, programs, and data from unauthorized access, change, or destruction. In addition, he coordinates the optimization of technology throughout VGM’s business units. Jeremy's involvement at VGM started in 1997, when he committed himself to growing VGM Forbin and positioning the organization as a leader in healthcare web development and online security. He is a regular contributor to the trade press and is a frequent technology speaker at industry events. Jeremy earned a bachelor's degree in marketing and business management from Upper Iowa University with additional credits from the computer information systems program at the University of Northern Iowa. He also holds an AAS in law enforcement and an MBA from the University of Iowa Executive Master of Business Administration Program.

Mike Isaacson is the Senior Vice President of Business Development for VGM & Associates In his role he supports Community Leaders by working to develop, grow, and enhance VGM & Associates member communities. Working with the team, Mike seeks out additional solutions for our partners, and new opportunities to improve services and supports to ensure a strong network of community providers. Before making his way to VGM, he spent 23 years as a state and national leader in not-for-profit community healthcare settings, creating services for individuals, families, and communities alike. These experiences created opportunities to develop and grow several service companies with a focus on customer obsession, employee engagement, government relations, provider relations, cross-system integration, and challenging the status quo. Staying true to his service roots, Mike sits on the Board of Directors for several non-profit agencies in the local area, assisting them in fund development, legislative initiatives, and community outreach. He has a Bachelor of Social Work and a Master of Public Policy from the University of Northern Iowa.

Topics

• Professional Development
• Customer Obsession
• Authentic Leadership
• Coaching
• Motivation & Engagement

Dave started his healthcare career at The Cleveland Clinic as a respiratory Therapist. He has been in the DME industry for over twenty years. Most of his experience is with Hospital-based DME's. He started in this industry as a staff Respiratory Therapist and has experience in Clinical, Operations, Billing, Executive Management, and Sales in the DME industry. Currently, Dave is the Director of Alternate Care for The VGM Group. Dave also serves on multiple committees regarding patient outcomes and patient care. Dave also serves as the co-chair for the education committee for OAMES and AA Homecare Respiratory focus group.

With over 14 years in the digital industry, Christina Throndson is a seasoned digital marketing strategist focused on bringing businesses and their targeted audiences together to meet goals and maximize ROI. As a long-time VGM Group, Inc., team member, Christina currently serves clients with a variety of online and offline marketing tactics within Moxie, a division of VGM. Her unique experience and knowledge in new media marketing allow her to focus most of her time planning and executing campaigns for VGM Group, Inc.'s largest vendor and member partners. Guiding industry business leaders in the financial and health care industries by presenting on the ever-changing marketing growth opportunities and solutions through audience targeting is a passion for Christina. When she's not strategizing, Christina digs being in the garden, shuffling with some friends or family over card games, or hanging with her charming southern husband, Blake, and their fluffy pup, Harvey.

Cassi Price is the Vice President of Corporate Projects at VGM Group, Inc. Cassi joined VGM in 2007 after earning her Bachelor of Arts degree in communications with an emphasis in public relations from the University of Northern Iowa. Throughout her professional career with VGM, she has been instrumental in developing strategic web marketing services and leading creative teams to bring maximum exposure to businesses of all sizes through social media marketing, search engine marketing and search engine optimization. Today, Cassi is responsible for collecting, structuring, managing and prioritizing a wide range of business needs across all VGM business units. With her strategic and service-oriented approach, Cassi works with the executive management of VGM and VGM business units to bring the company forward through initiatives in software, facilities, training, and process.

Topics

• Project Management
• Servant Leadership
• Promoting Your Brand Online

As a VGM associate since 2012, Ronda specializes in the billing and reimbursement. She managed a hospital-based DME in Illinois for 12 years, and handled sales and marketing. Ronda is a respiratory therapist as well as a certified mastectomy fitter. She assists VGM members with review of claims and all types of audits, and educates members on medical policies in the respiratory and all other general DME products. She serves on the Jurisdictions B and D respiratory team, is a member of the Provider Outreach and Education teams with the Jurisdictions, and attends the council meetings with Jurisdiction B, C, and D. She is also on the Great Lakes Home Medical Services Association Board of Directors and a member the National Supplier Clearinghouse Advisory Council. Ronda has presented at the VGM Heartland Conference as well as the Medtrade and state association meetings, and has conducted webinars and on-site education with VGM Members.

Topics

• Reimbursement and Billing
• Any respiratory equipment, general DME, wound, etc.  (Everything but complex rehab and PMD)
• Face to Face Ruling
• How to respond to audits and work audits
• Being proactive with audits
• Denials
• Educating referrals
• Appeals Process
• Intake processes
• Documentation Review

Dan serves as a compliance specialist for VGM and US Rehab members. He is a graduate of Penn State University where he earned a BS in Economics with a Business Minor. Dan joined VGM in 2014 and before that, was the Director of Education and Compliance for Pride Mobility Products Corp for 13 years. Prior to joining Pride, Dan served as a Senior Manager for Professional Relations and Electronic Data Interchange for the Jurisdiction A DME MAC (United Healthcare) for 6 years. Dan has presented at numerous local and national events regarding Medicare reimbursement including, Medtrade, state association meetings and at multiple rehab facilities. In addition, Dan was a guest lecturer for a funding class at the University of Pittsburgh and has testified at several hearings regarding Medicare reimbursement.

Topics

• Medicare Reimbursement for Mobility Products
• Medicare / Medicaid Compliance
• Billing
• Medicare Standard Operation Procedures (SOP)
• Medicare Updates
• Clinician Education on Medicare Documentation Requirements

Jim joined VGM in 2015 after serving as President of Black Bear Medical in Maine for 27 years. His responsibility at VGM is to help members grow their market share in the Aging in Place/ Home Accessibility world. Jim led Black Bear Medical to be a market leader in the Complex Rehab, Disposable Supply , Retail and Home Modification's He served on the NEMED (now HOMES) board for 16 years as Maine State Chair and was President of that association in 2006-07. Jim also was an aggressive advocate for the industry and lobbied for the industry at both the federal and state levels. He currently serves on the Medtrade Education Advisory Board and has spoken at national events since 2009. In 2017 Jim became chair of the Nation Home Modification Access Committee through MAMES.

Topics

• HME Retail/ Caretailing sharing real life success
• Home Accessibility, Aging in Place Market- Market Opportunities
• All things HME Business Ownership
• HME Business Marketing, effective and cost efficient

Ryan Ball, director of VGM Market Data, has worked in the DME industry for The VGM Group, for nine years as director of DME state policy and various other analyst roles within VGM Government & Regulatory department. Prior to working as a regulatory analyst, Ryan worked as a political campaign consultant, focusing primarily on developing and analyzing data to identify statistically-significant market trends and make recommendations on efficient resource allocation. Ryan is the director of VGM Market Data and works with VGM members to harness the value of claims data to grow their business with key referral sources.

In today's high tech world, data is being utilized to increase efficiencies and identify new opportunities for growth. The Affordable Care Act allocated billions of dollars to incentivize health care providers to utilize electronic medical records over the past several years, and that investment has led to a technological boom in data available to target key physicians. It seems everyone is utilizing "big data," so why aren't HMEs? This presentation will identify health care claims data that is available on DME products and traditional referral sources. After detailing opportunities, this presentation will identify real-world examples and provide guidance on how data can be used to revolutionize the sales force and marketing efforts for HMEs of all shapes and sizes.

Topics

• Identify opportunities within HME industry to obtain targeted claims data
• Demonstrate specific examples of how HME's can use data to grow their referral base
• Discuss current referral source management techniques
• Discuss strategies to effectively and efficiently engage referral sources

Bill leads all sales, marketing, and business development opportunities for VGM Insurance. He is a graduate of the University of Northern Iowa and currently holds his Certified Professional Insurance Agent (CPIA) designation and is pursuing the Certified Risk Manager (CRM) designation. Bill joined VGM in 2014, and before that, served as Commercial Vice President for one of Iowa's largest independent insurance brokers. Bill has served on a number of Presidents Councils of regional and national insurance companies and has successfully completed rigorous leadership programs from 3 different carriers. In addition, he was recognized locally in 2013 as a “20 Under 40” emerging leader along with graduating from the 2014 Leadership Iowa Class facilitated by the Association of Business and Industry.

Topics

• Enterprise Risk Management
• Insurance and the HME Provider
• Insurance and the O&P Practitioner
• Medicare / Medicaid Surety Bonds
• Updates on Insurance Regulations
• Updates on Insurance as it relates to an industry
• Risk and Reward - Helping providers evaluate the products and practices from a risk vs. reward perspective. 
• Health  Insurance and  Reform

Craig currently serves as vice president of Payer and Member Relations for The VGM Group, where he focuses on helping providers navigate payer relationships, as well as addressing concerns that are impacting VGM’s broad range of members from a payer perspective. Craig has also previously served as vice president of Provider Relations for VGM’s Homelink division, where he built and fostered relationships with payers and providers across the country. Craig has been with VGM since 1999.

Greg's background, which includes sales management for Pride Mobility Products Corp. and Biocore Medical Technologies, Inc., gives him an understanding of both the sales and product areas of rehabilitation technology. Additionally, he served three terms in the Kansas House of Representatives, so Greg is familiar with the regulatory and governmental issues facing the rehab/HME industries. A graduate of Iowa State University, Greg received his master of business administration degree from Baker University.

Topics

• Medicaid issues
• Rehab business operations 

Heather Trumm is the Director of Wound Care at VGM. Heather educates VGM members about the importance of diversifying product selection and incorporating aspects of wound care into their product mix. She also educates members in caring for the patient with wounds. Heather’s past nursing experience encompasses medical/surgical nursing, community and public health nursing, home health care nursing and she also worked in sales for major health care corporations.

Heather has lectured at conferences, trade shows and seminars all across the country. She is a member of the National WOCN Society, current Public Policy Committee Member for the WOCN Society, President for the Iowa Affiliate of the WOCN Society, and a supporter of the National Nurses Association.

Lindy Tentinger is the president of VGM Forbin. She was previously the senior vice president of marketing for VGM & Associates for 3 years. Prior to joining VGM in 2017, Lindy worked at a global Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) company for 11 years. She built the company’s marketing department from the ground up, and led both sales and marketing through a digital transformation and a re-branding/positioning launch. Her marketing leadership helped gain global exposure and year-over-year revenue growth for the company’s multiple business units. She is well-versed in many industry verticals including healthcare, financial services, utilities, government, telecommunications, and higher education. Lindy has a BA in Electronic Media, as well as an MBA.

Paul DiMarco is vice president, Organizational Development of VGM Group Inc. In his role, Paul strategizes employee and organizational development plans with the various VGM business units. Paul also gets involved in presenting and facilitating development programs and holds certifications and credentials in multiple development programs/disciplines – most recently as a Certified Strengths Coach for the Clifton Strengths program with Gallup Corporation, and as an Associate Professional in Talent Development.  He has held leadership and development positions since joining VGM in 2010.  Paul and his wife, Lynda, live in Waverly, IA and have two sons and two grandsons. Paul enjoys travel, creating outdoor adventures, and smoking many kinds of meat.

Nikki Jensen is vice president of Essentially Women and oversees the daily operation of the membership group. She started her career with VGM Group in 1995 in the equipment finance division. Over the course of being with VGM from 1995-1999 and 2009 to the present, Nikki has had experience working with many divisions of VGM including HOMELINK, VGM Insurance, National Sleep Services, and VGM & Associates. Prior to VGM, Nikki spent six years in pharmaceutical sales and four years in the insurance industry. She is passionate about helping independent providers thrive and succeed. She understands how challenging it is to operate under scrutiny of payer guidelines and wants EW to be a resource to be leaned on as community of like-minded people working to serve patients.

Todd Eagen is president of Orthotic Prosthetic Group of America (OPGA), a membership organization that provides comprehensive business services to more than 1,200 independent O&P practitioners nationwide. He has a great understanding of the health care system, in particular, patient care, practice management, and the complexities of reimbursement and regulatory guidelines. Through his leadership, OPGA has excelled at connecting its membership and supplier partners to programs that improve productivity, proficiency and profits. Prior to joining OPGA, Todd was a senior sales representative for GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals, where he worked with both primary care and specialty physicians to connect them to an extensive portfolio of medications. Todd earned his Master of Arts degree in Physical Education with an emphasis in anatomy and kinesiology from the University of Northern Iowa after which he served as an assistant football coach for 12 years.

Rob Baumhover is director of Retail Programs with VGM & Associates. He is the creator of the VGM Retail Program, which assists VGM members to diversify their HME businesses through improved retail operations. Before joining VGM in 2010, Rob worked in a variety of positions with big-box retail companies including Bed, Bath & Beyond, Hobby Lobby, Menards, and Wal-Mart. In his retail career spanning more than 20 years, Rob opened and managed numerous big-box retail stores throughout the Midwest, with responsibilities including the daily operations of stores, the setup of floor plans, ordering merchandise, and the hiring and training of management and sales employees. Rob holds a Bachelor of Science in Teaching from Clarke University in Dubuque, Iowa.

Sara Laures is the cheif people officer for VGM Group, Inc. where she oversees people and culture strategy, human resources, talent acquisition, organizational development, facilities management, and manages corporate projects that support the success of VGM’s multiple businesses and its employees. Sara has held roles in multiple VGM businesses during her career. She began at VGM’s HOMELINK division in 1998 and spent five years developing a foundational knowledge of care coordination and its impact on patients’ access to quality healthcare. For 14 years, she was responsible for leadership of VGM Education, spearheading the development of its robust virtual education platform and content. In her current role, she worked to expand workplace flexibility guidelines when VGM transitioned to a work-from-home policy, improving work-life balance of all employees – especially working mothers.

Sara has a bachelor’s degree in health services administration from Upper Iowa University. Because of her experience working her way up the corporate ladder, Sara advises and mentors many other aspiring female leaders. And as an associate certified coach through ICF, iPEC certified professional coach and Energy Leadership Index Master Practitioner, she is a knowledgeable resource for women in the workplace. To further support and recognize employee owners at VGM, Sara has grown Women in Leadership (WIL) at VGM, helps guide the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee, and emcees the VGM Award ceremony. She also serves on a number of boards and task forces in the Cedar Valley community.

Amy joined VGM in 2011 as the talent and development manager at VGM Homelink and transitioned in 2014 to the role of manager of talent acquisition and development for VGM Group. Promoted to VP of Talent Acquisition and Development in early 2018, Amy is a strategic partner for the divisions of VGM, assisting with their human capital needs as it relates to recruiting and hiring actions, and strategic company engagement initiatives. Prior to joining VGM, Amy was in retail management working with L Brands. During her eight years with L Brands, she moved throughout the Midwest managing Victoria’s Secret retail store locations. Within this role, she also facilitated the management training initiatives for a number of stores within the central states. Amy holds a bachelor's in marketing from the University of Northern Iowa. Born and raised on a farm in Northeast Iowa, Amy is at home in the country, and relocated back to Iowa in 2010. Today, Amy resides two hours from VGM’s headquarters and works remotely most days. This work arrangement allows her to personally explore and learn what it means to be both a leader and an employee in a remote environment and to lend guidance and support to leaders as they broaden their talent search and adapt to a remote leadership environment.