BALTIMORE--Industry stakeholders seeking answers to questions about accreditation, compensation for competitive bid winners and other home medical equipment issues for the most part came away empty-handed from CMS' Open Door phone call last week.
Agency officials apologized repeatedly during Wednesday's question-and-answer session for home health, hospice and HME, noting that, because of vacations, “we don't have the whole staff here.” Callers were asked to e-mail their questions so they could be routed to the appropriate person at CMS.
Officials did have information on last weekend's transition from the Statistical Analysis DME Regional Carrier--Palmetto GBA--to the new Pricing, Data Analysis and Coding Contractor, Noridian Administrative Services.
Effective today, they said, the Web site at www.dmepac.com would be fully operational. Also, the PDAC help center can be contacted from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. CT at 877/735-1326.
CMS' Nancy Sullivan clarified for one caller that claims should continue to be sent to providers' current carrier.
Other questions from the 394 callers on the line went mostly unanswered, however.
Two callers requested substantiation of a Dec. 2 deadline by which, under a provision of the “Conditions of Payment” final rule for hospices, all HME providers who supply equipment to Medicare hospices must be accredited (see HomeCare Monday, Aug. 11).
“We, like many other DMEs in the country, were under the impression that mandatory accreditation [for DMEs] wasn't needed until Sept. 30, 2009,” the first caller said. The Dec. 2 deadline, he added, was “a very unreasonable deadline to meet.”
“I think we do not have the right folks to answer this,” responded Lori Anderson of CMS. “We think that information is clearly defined in the regs. But if you can send the question to me, we can get you an explicit answer.”
Moments later, Bruce Rodman of the National Home Infusion Association said he had read the regulations and it was still unclear to him whether the Dec. 2 deadline stood for those HME and infusion providers supplying hospices.
“I think DME providers and home infusion providers need a clarification--and a quick one,” he said.
Again, Anderson directed Rodman to send her an e-mail.
Several callers also inquired whether CMS would be addressing the issue of compensation for providers who were awarded competitive bidding contracts in round one but subsequently lost those contracts when the bidding project was delayed under H.R. 6331.
“Will there be any guidance written concerning damages or potential damages under competitive bidding as a result of the withdrawal of those contracts?” asked Eric Sokol of the Power Mobility Coalition. Sokol elaborated, saying he was concerned that suppliers might have entered into other contracts that they might now be liable for.
“Joel Kaiser (deputy director of DMEPOS policy for CMS) is not in the room with us,” Anderson said. Again, she requested an e-mail to be forwarded to Kaiser.
Because CMS dropped its accreditation deadlines for HME providers in round two of bidding, Sokol also questioned whether CMS had considered rolling out additional deadlines instead of the Sept. 30, 2009, universal accreditation deadline for all suppliers.
“I wish I had an answer for you today, although we are working with our general counsel,” answered CMS' Sandra Bastinelli, adding that she hoped to have guidance on that issue during the next Open Door call.
Rob Brandt of the Accredited Medical Equipment Providers of America asked whether CMS had a timeframe for when the oxygen title transfer rules would be released and whether there would be a comment period. He was told to send an e-mail.
So was a caller who said National Government Services, which holds the Common Electronic Data Interchange contract, had been unresponsive to phone calls and messages.
Mary Ellen Conway, president of Capital Healthcare Group, Bethesda, Md., reaped a bit more information in response to her request for clarification on whether physicians dispensing HME were exempt from accreditation “at this place and time until further guidelines are issued.”
“We do not have any guidance to send out to the public,” Bastinelli said, adding: “If you read the law, it does appear that it does have a different deadline for physicians and professional groups.”
Because of the dearth of qualified CMS personnel to answer his questions, Walt Gorski, vice president of government affairs for the American Asosciation for Homecare, sidelined his queries about the local coverage determinations that have emerged from the DME MACs on CPAPs.
“These are significant changes from the current policy and I think people need to have some guidance from CMS,” he said. “Can we have people there who can answer a full range of questions next month?”
CMS officials said that would be possible. The next Open Door call is scheduled Sept. 17.