Competitive Bidding Updates and Other Info You Need to Know

BALTIMORE–The news on competitive bidding and other government
initiatives is moving a mile a minute and, at that breakneck speed,
it’s easy to miss something that could be imperative for your
business. To help, HomeCare has assembled the following list of
dates and events to keep you prepared.

* CMS will host its second national provider education call on
competitive bidding on May 27 from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET. Agency
officials will answer questions and address “exceptions and
situations” that may occur with implementation of the bidding
program. To receive the call-in information, you must register for
the teleconference before 1 p.m. ET on May 26. To register,

click here. To view a PowerPoint presentation that was used in
the agency’s initial training call last week,
click here.

* The CMS Web site address for information on competitive
bidding has changed. It can now be found at
www.cms.hhs.gov/DMEPOScompetitivebid.

* A new chapter dealing with competitive bidding has been posted
to the Medicare Claims Processing Manual. Chapter 36 is
“dedicated to policies and contractor instructions related to
DMEPOS competitive bidding,” according to CMS’ Joel
Kaiser, speaking during an Open Door Forum on Tuesday. “This
is the initial installment,” Kaiser said. “There will
be more installments coming in the very near future. [The claims
processing manual contains an] overview of the competitive bidding
program, a lot of basic, general information about the program, and
the most important thing to note about the first installment is
regarding the grandfathering policies for oxygen and oxygen
equipment and rented DME.”

* Information on grandfathering has also been posted on the CBIC
Web site at http://www.dmecompetitivebid.com/Palmetto/Cbic.nsf/DocsCat/Home.
According to CMS, providers in the first 10 MSAs must make the
determination about whether they will operate as grandfathered
suppliers before the implementation of round one on July 1.

* Beneficiary notice letters, which detail the processes and
procedures of DMEPOS competitive bidding, have also been posted to
the Web. Providers can view sample letters on the CBIC Web site at

www.dmecompetitivebid.com.

* During a national provider training call on Tuesday, the CBIC
announced its implementation of an ombudsman program for round one
of bidding. A CBIC representative said eight ombudsmen for the
first 10 MSAs will be available to work with providers
“soon.”

* During the Open Door call last week, CMS’ Sandra
Bastinelli said to expect the final list of accreditation quality
standards revisions–the comment period for which ended in
March–to be posted “soon.” She also said the fourth in
a series of educational calls on mandatory accreditation would
occur in July. The exact date, she said, would be announced at the
next Open Door, which has been scheduled for June 25.

* The deadline for providers in round two to apply for
accreditation has passed (May 14). Providers in the 70 round two
MSAs who wish to be considered for contracts must receive their
accreditation no later than Oct. 31, 2008.

* According to CMS, a directory with the names and contact
information for contract suppliers will be posted in June at

www.medicare.gov.

* For questions about competitive bidding, the telephone number
for the CBIC’s customer service center is 877/577-5331. CMS
advised that claims-specific questions be directed to the four DME
MACs, policy questions to the CBIC and enrollment questions to the
NSC. The email address for questions to the CBIC is [email protected].

* National Government Services, the CEDI contractor, will
conduct two “Ask the Contractor” teleconferences for all DME MAC
electronic trading partners, vendors, billing services and
clearinghouses on Tuesday, May 20, and Thursday, May 22, from 1
p.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET. The teleconference dial-in number for both
calls is 888/285-8453. The conference ID for the May 20 call is
48021388. The ID for the May 22 call is 48024786. Registration for
the calls is not necessary.

* On Wednesday, May 21–the same day as the American Association
for Homecare’s Medicare Bidding Fly-in–the House Small
Business Subcommittee on Rural and Urban Entrepreneurship will hold
a hearing on “Competitive Bidding for Durable Medical
Equipment.” Small providers representing AAHomecare, the
North Carolina Association for Medical Equipment Services and
Waterloo, Iowa-based VGM are among the organizations that will give
testimony. The hearing will be held at 10 a.m. in Room 1539 at the
Longworth House Office Building on Capitol Hill.

* May 23 is the deadline for suppliers to begin using their
NPI-only numbers for all HIPAA and paper transactions where a
provider identifier is required. Providers who attempt a
transaction with a Medicare legacy identifier after this date will
have their claims rejected. To address questions about the NPI, CMS
will hold a national NPI roundtable Q&A session today from 2
p.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET. To register for the call or for replay
information,
click here.