Senate staff briefing set March 14 on competitive bidding

Senate staff members are scheduled for an update next week on Medicare’s controversial Competitive Bidding Program.

Officials from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will brief U.S. Senate staffers on Rounds 1 and 2 of the program at 2 p.m., Wednesday, March 14, in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room SD-430.

The American Association for Homecare is urging HME providers to alert their senators about the importance of this briefing.

“This is our opportunity to explain the negative consequences of Round 1 in terms of patients’ reduced access to homecare, the harm to HME providers and alarm about the spread of the bidding program to 91 additional areas in Round 2,’’ AAHomecare said in a release last week.

AAHomecare said providers should ask senators’ health legislative assistants to:
• Attend the briefing
• Ask CMS tough questions about the program
• Request that CMS release additional information about the bidding program

For more information, contact Jay Witter at [email protected], 703-535-1884.