Sequestration cuts to hit some HME items

WASHINGTON, D.C., March 6, 2013—On Friday, March 1, the Office of Management and Budget submitted a report to Congress detailing $85 billion in budget cuts to comply with sequestration. Although sequestration requires reductions of two percent to Medicare payments, it remains unclear whether or not the reductions will impact competitive bidding contracts. However, it is virtually certain that home medical equipment items that are not subject to bidding, and HME items that are not furnished in competitively bid areas will be subject to the cut.

AAHomecare has been vigorously arguing that items under contract through the bidding program should be exempted from any further reductions. “We are making the point that when Congress eliminated the first month purchase option for standard power wheelchairs in 2011, this change did not affect power wheelchairs furnished in bidding areas,” says AAHomecare’s Walter Gorski. “Consumers still had the option to elect to purchase their power wheelchairs in the first month.” To read the full OMB report, click here. For more information on issues related to the sequestration, please contact AAHomecare’s Rachel Prager at [email protected] or 202-372-0756. Also go to www.aahomecare.org.