Washington
When the members of the Medicare Prescription Drug Conference
Committee headed home for the August recess, they left behind
representatives who were able to agree on a key provision of the
compromise: a Medicare prescription drug discount card.
“Conferees, through their staff, have worked through
scores of issues, and while some technical drafting still needs to
be completed, only one issue remains in [the discount card]
area,” the House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee
reported Aug. 5.
This agreement clears the table for negotiations on
“non-controversial provider issues,” set to begin this
month according to a schedule that Ways and Means Chairman Bill
Thomas, R-Calif., drafted before the recess. Whether Thomas
considers home-care provisions, such as national competitive
bidding for durable medical equipment, to be
“non-controversial provider issues” is not clear.
The Committee also agreed on a set of Medicare regulatory and
contracting reform provisions that included standards for claims
reviews and increased funding for provider education. For an
in-depth look at these provisions, see this month's
“Washington Wit & Wisdom” column on page 88.
For durable medical equipment providers, the steady progress
toward Medicare reform means lawmakers soon could decide the fate
of several home care-related provisions, including one in the House
version that calls for national competitive bidding. An alternative
provision, which is part of the Senate's reform package, would
freeze consumer price index reimbursements for DME for seven
years.
However, the Congressional Budget Office has said both Medicare
bills would exceed the $400 billion lawmakers set aside earlier
this year to pay for a prescription drug benefit, according to a
July 22 report from the U.S. Congressional Budget Office.
Depending on how one slices the pie, the House bill could exceed
the limit by anywhere from $8 billion to $167 billion during the
next decade. The Senate bill could exceed the limit by anywhere
from $22 billion to $62 billion during the same time period.
What this means for the home care industry is that House and
Senate conferees currently negotiating a compromise on Medicare
reform will be looking for ways to save. “As co-chairs of the
House delegation, we pledge to keep the cost of the Medicare
conference report under the $400 billion figure agreed upon in the
Budget Resolution,” House Ways and Means Chairman Bill
Thomas, R-Calif., and House Energy and Commerce Chairman Billy
Tauzin, R-La., promised in a joint statement.
Thomas, who is serving as chairman of the Medicare-reform
conference committee, is a self-avowed champion of competitive
bidding for durable medical equipment, a program he believes could
save Medicare billions during the coming decade.
For breaking news, go to www.homecaremonday.com, the electronic news service
of the home medical equipment industry.
