DME Providers Voice Concerns During SBA Regulatory Fairness Event

CHEYENNE, WYO. (March 28, 2016)—Home medical equipment providers from across Wyoming and parts of Colorado testified two weeks ago during the Small Business Administration’s Regulatory Fairness meeting.

During the event, seven providers shared their stories of how Medicare policies, particularly reimbursement cuts and extensive auditing, have affected Wyoming HME providers and the patients they serve.

“I think it’s important for the people that are on Medicare, people that are going to be on Medicare and our lawmakers all understand that we need some help,” said Michelle McMahon of Frontier Access & Mobility.   

The SBA’s National Ombudsman, Earl L Gay, is hosting regulatory fairness events throughout the U.S. These events provide members of the small business community an opportunity to share how federal regulations are impacting business. 

VGM Group, Inc’s Government Relations department invited local providers to the SBA meeting to have them share their concerns over the regulatory environment. Staff members from Wyoming congressional members Sen. Michael Enzi, Sen. John Barrasso and Rep. Cynthia Lummis were also in attendance to hear the concerns of their constituents.

“The meeting provided home medical equipment providers the opportunity to share real-time input on their daily struggles to maintain efficient operations, but still provide quality of service to the patients who depend on their products,” said John Gallagher, vice president of government relations for VGM. “We appreciate Admiral Gay and the SBA for listening to our concerns, and I hope that they use these testimonials to work with federal regulators to facilitate practical and timely resolutions.”

The next SBA Regulatory Fairness meeting will take place March 23 in Bismarck, N.D., followed by a hearing March 24 in Sioux Falls, S.D.  

For more information about the SBA or to submit a comment to the National Ombudsman’s office, visit sba.gov/ombudsman or call 888-REG-FAIR (888-734-3247).  

Click here to view KGWN video coverage.