Business Briefs

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TAMPA BAY AREA

Oxygen Companies Probed

An investigation into 10 oxygen providers in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties has raised enough concerns to support further examination by state investigators, Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration said Friday. The preliminary investigation by AHCA and the office of Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum centered on oxygen concentrators, equipment for patients with respiratory illnesses such as emphysema. The 12-member team of investigators found instances of billing for equipment that was never delivered to patients, the AHCA said.

The findings will be referred to the state attorney general's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit or the Department of Health, AHCA spokesman Fernando R. Senra said Friday.

The companies that were visited this week by investigators were: ASAP Home Oxygen in St. Petersburg; BayCare Home Care in Largo; CareMed Respiratory Services in Tampa; the Brandon, Plant City and St. Petersburg facilities of Clearwater-based Lincare Holdings; Matrix Medical in Plant City; Mercury Enterprises in Clearwater; Respitek in Tampa; and Rotech Oxygen and Medical Equipment in Tampa.

Although there were enough concerns to forward the findings for further investigation, Senra said Friday in an e-mail to The Tampa Tribune that "this does not mean those entities will find cause to sanction any of those providers."

Ikea Site Work Under Way

Demolition crews have begun clearing the site for the Ikea home furnishings store at Adamo Drive and 22nd Street, east of downtown Tampa. Crews are razing the Tampa International Center on the 29-acre site to make way for a 350,000-square-foot store that's scheduled to open in 2009.

Airport Ridership Declines

After nine consecutive months of increased ridership at Tampa International Airport, November's figures declined 2.1 percent compared with a year ago to 777,057 departing passengers. Traffic for airport leader Southwest Airlines grew 3.7 percent year-over-year in November, but second-place Delta Air Lines, which adjusted routes nationwide during the year, dropped 5.9 percent.

Progress Energy's New VPs

Michael Lewis has been named senior vice president of Energy Delivery for Progress Energy Florida, the No. 2 job at the St. Petersburg-based electric utility behind President and CEO Jeff Lyash. Lewis, 45, replaces Jeff Corbett, 48, who will assume the same position at Progress Energy Carolinas, the Raleigh, N.C.-based parent company. The changes become effective Jan. 2.

A staff and wire report