Major Respiratory Players Form Oxygen Coalition

Washington

A week after CMS announced its plans to reshape Medicare reimbursement for home oxygen, a group of 11 respiratory providers and manufacturers joined together in an advocacy coalition called the Council for Quality Respiratory Care.

Members of the group include Airsep, Air Products, American HomePatient, Apria, Invacare, Lincare, Pacific Pulmonary, Praxair, Respironics, Rotech and Sunrise Medical.

CQRC said its goal is to work with policymakers to “facilitate a deeper understanding of the clinical and operational complexities associated with the provision of home oxygen therapy.”

In its first public statement, the group expressed disappointment with CMS’ proposal to change oxygen categories and fees.

“We are concerned that [the] proposal by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to overhaul Medicare’s payment system for home oxygen therapy will have a negative impact on providers’ ability to assure access to the level of care and services beneficiaries expect and deserve,” said Peter Kelly, CEO of Pacific Pulmonary and chairman of the CQRC.

“The CQRC is currently analyzing the proposed regulation, and we are ready and willing to work collaboratively with CMS and Congress to carefully evaluate this proposal in the context of other significant policy changes, including competitive bidding requirements that will be implemented in 2007 and mandatory patient ownership provisions that will take effect in 2009,” Kelly continued. “Viewing each of these new policies in isolation is ill-advised and could have negative consequences on patients that are unintended.”

The council said it will provide comments and analysis on the policy changes to the industry, to CMS and Congress, and it looks forward to a “constructive dialogue.”