VGM Government and Great Lakes State Association attend Legislative Event in Indiana

Published in Government Relations on July 15, 2022

Earlier this week, VGM's John Gallagher, VP of Government relations, attended a legistlative event for former Indiana state senator and Congressional candidate for the US House of Representatives Erin Houchin hosted by Great Lakes state assocation.

As reported by Great Lakes State Association:

Great Lakes president Chuck Williams and his team hosted a site visit and meet-and-greet at Williams Bros. Healthcare Pharmacy location in Paoli, Indiana, for Erin Houchin, former Indiana state senator and Congressional candidate for the US House of Representatives. She is seeking election to serve Indiana’s 9th Congressional district replacing Rep. Trey Hollingsworth who announced he was not seeking re-election earlier this year. As a state senator, Ms. Houchin has been supportive of the HME industry and engaged on a number of issues related to the state’s Medicaid program working closely with Great Lakes. 

The event included representatives pictured left to right: Derek Johnson and Jennifer Lowe, RN with Williams Bros. Healthcare Pharmacy; Kevin Stewart, Community Health Network and Great Lakes past president; Chuck Williams, Executive VP of Williams Bros.; Senator Houchin; Kam Yuricich, Great Lakes executive director; John Gallagher, VP of Government Relations for The VGM Group and Josiah McSpadden, manager of Williams Bros. Healthcare Pharmacy's Paoli, Indiana, branch.

The discussion focused on the value of HME services and the operational and financial challenges providers experience today, especially those serving rural areas, due to increasing costs, supply chain disruption and labor shortages all while facing fixed reimbursement by payers. This is a difficult combination that risks patients' access to services at home. The group discussed the declining network of HME providers as evidenced by the most recent quarterly tracking report showing a 29% decline in the number of HME supplier locations in Indiana since Round 2 of the bidding program launched in July 2013.  

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