AAHomecare Comments on CMS Competitive Bidding Rule

WASHINGTON, D.C. (August 24, 2016)—Yesterday, AAHomecare submitted comments on CMS-1651-P, a rule from CMS that proposes to make some adjustments to the Competitive Bidding Program. CMS proposed to make several positive changes, such as increasing the bid ceiling to the 2015 unadjusted fee schedule and expanding the appeals process for breach of contract actions. CMS also proposed methods to correct price inversion and introduced the lead item bidding strategy for items that have experienced price inversion in previous competitive bidding rounds. AAHomecare supported CMS’s lead item bidding, but recommended CMS to consider allowing stakeholders to participate when deciding on a lead item.

AAHomecare also made several recommendations regarding the definitions surrounding price inversion to ensure that the correct items are considered when correcting price inversion.

In addition to commenting on the proposed changes to the Competitive Bidding Program, AAHomecare also shared access to care problems for beneficiaries that qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid coverage, and shared some recommendations to improve care for these beneficiaries.

You can find AAHomecare’s comments here.

Visit aahomecare.org for more information.