Registration ends Thursday for Round 2 of competitive bidding

Registration for Round 2 of the Competitive Bidding Program closes on Thursday, Feb. 9. Bidding is already underway, with the 60-day bid window opening on Monday, Jan. 30.

HME providers are submitting bids online using the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services DMEPOS Bidding System (DBidS).

Last week, CMS released new educational materials on the Competitive Bidding Implementation Contractor (CBIC) website. The materials include:

• The DBidS Reference Guide, which provides step-by-step instructions for using the online bidding system.
• The final in a series of webcasts, which is entitled How to Submit a Bid. Webcasts are available on demand. There is no charge, and a transcript for each webcast is also posted on the website. To view the webcasts, go to the CBIC website, select Bidding Suppliers: Round 2 & National Mail-Order and choose Education Events.

Before submitting a bid, providers should review the Request for Bids (RFB) Instructions and the DBidS Reference Guide. The RFB instructions also specify required documents each bidder must submit in hard copy form to the Competitive Bidding Implementation Contractor (CBIC) at:

Palmetto, GBA
Competitive Bidding Implementation Contractor
2743 Perimeter Pkwy, Ste. 200-400
Augusta, GA 30909-6499

Medicare is urging bidders to submit hard copy financial documents in time for the CBIC to receive documents on or before the Covered Document Review Date, Feb. 29, 2012. If the CBIC receives financial documents by that date, providers will be notified of any missing financial documents. If the CBIC does not receive documents by then, providers will not be notified of missing documents. All hard copy documents must be received by the CBIC on or before March 30, 2012.

All bids must be completed, approved and certified in DBidS by 8:59:59 p.m. ET on March 30, 2012.