Proposed House Bill Would Shorten O2 Rental Period

WASHINGTON–The industry’s worry meter flew past the red zone
last week as federal lawmakers hashed out the nation’s spending
bills, including committee debates on health care legislation, and,
in the process, brought a reduced oxygen rental period and
elimination of the first-month purchase option for power
wheelchairs back into play.

An update from the American Association for Homecare reported
that in the wee hours Friday morning, the House Ways and Means
Committee approved its version of the Children’s Health and
Medicare Protection Act of 2007 (H.R. 3162), which would reduce the
oxygen cap period from 36 to 18 months. Referred to as the CHAMP
Act, the measure would maintain the 36-month rental period for
oxygen-generating portable equipment. Transfer of ownership of
oxygen equipment to the beneficiary would be subject to these
limits.

Another provision in the bill would eliminate the first-month
purchase option for power wheelchairs.

The proposed legislation would expand spending on the State
Children’s Health Insurance Program, which covers 6 million
low-income children whose families don’t qualify for Medicaid, by
about $50 billion. AAHomecare said that instead of increasing
tobacco taxes enough to pay for the changes, the legislators
instead decided on reimbursement cuts to DME.

Congress has already reduced Medicare reimbursement for oxygen
therapy by nearly 50 percent over the past 10 years, the
association pointed out. And because many power wheelchairs are
individualized for the patient, eliminating the first-month
purchase option would severely curtail beneficiary access as
suppliers would be unable to cover the significant up-front service
costs.

Earlier this year, AAHomecare said more than 95 percent of all
PWCs are purchased in the first month because beneficiaries who
meet the coverage criteria have long-term life needs; it makes
little sense to rent the equipment.

“Both oxygen therapy and power wheelchair reimbursement have
suffered numerous reimbursement reductions, which already threaten
to erode patient access and quality of care,” said Tyler Wilson,
AAHomecare president and CEO.

A reduction of the oxygen cap to 13 months and elimination of
the PWC purchase option surfaced in President Bush’s budget
proposal for 2008, released in February. (See HomeCare Monday, Feb. 12.)

Meanwhile, the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which shares
jurisdiction with Ways and Means over the SCHIP program, is still
working on its version of the CHAMP bill. The Senate is also
scheduled to begin debate this week on its own $35 billion
expansion of SCHIP.

To help get the oxygen cuts removed from the legislation and the
PWC first-month purchase option added, AAHomecare and other
industry groups have issued an urgent call to action. For talking
points and telephone scripts for calls to members of Congress,
visit the AAHomecare Web site at www.aahomecare.org or The VGM Group Web site at
www.vgm.com.