competitive bidding

WASHINGTON, D.C. (August 2, 2017)—AAHomecare’s Kim Brummett and Mina Uehara recently participated in a Government Accounting Office (GAO) interview regarding patient access in non-competitive bid areas and followed up with a letter to the Agency summarizing key points from the session. In discussing the effects on patient access since the 2016 cuts, AAHomecare notes:

WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 7, 2017)—TRICARE is issuing its first official acknowledgements that they will reprocess claims from July 1 through December 31, 2016 to reflect adjustments to the fee schedule mandated by last December’s CURES bill.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 29, 2017)—CMS released proposed 2018 changes to End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Prospective Payment System and related kidney/renal disease regulations.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 26, 2017)—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced that accessories for Group 3 power Complex Rehab Technology (CRT) mobility products will continue to remain exempt from the application of competitive bidding derived pricing for Medicare beneficiaries.

ROSEVILLE, Iowa (May 25, 2017)—In an effort spearheaded by Midwest Association for Medical Equipment Services (MAMES) and its president, Patrick Naeger, independent HME suppliers have gained the attention of the House Small Business Committee. Much like the concerns prompting a letter being circulated by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and others, the Small Business Committee is gravely concerned by the 38 percent reduction in providers in such a short period.

WATERLOO, Iowa (May 22, 2017)—If a picture is worth a thousand words, imagine the power of a video. For years, clinicians and case managers have struggled to coordinate care for their Medicare patients who require home medical equipment, services, and supplies under the Competitive Bidding Program (CBP). Meanwhile, CMS reports that there are no issues with CBP and that access has been unaffected.

Washington D.C. (May 17, 2017)—A letter authored by Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), Dave Loebsack (D-Iowa), Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.), and Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) is calling for reforms to policies and regulations involving durable medical equipment and complex rehab technology. The letter is to be sent to Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price and CMS Administrator Seema Verma.

—Via AAHomecare, WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 10, 2017)—On Monday, CGS, the DME MAC Jurisdiction C and B contractor announced that they are prepared to begin reprocessing claims that are subject to the CURES-mandated fee schedule adjustment. The mass adjustments will be conducted in batches. They will be processing claims five days a week and it is expected to take 24 weeks to complete. Jurisdiction C has approximately 4.7 million claims and is planning to reprocess 40,000 claims per day.

—Via AAHomecare, WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 10, 2017)—AAHomecare continues to press the case for longer-term relief for rural and non-bid area providers, as well as for significant structural improvements to the Competitive Bidding Program with Federal regulators.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

—Via AAHomecare WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 2, 2017)—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has updated the fee schedule for rural and non-bid areas to adjust reimbursements to rural providers for products and services furnished between the July 1–December 31 period.


—Via AAHomecare, WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 26, 2017)—According to research AAHomecare had been performing using Medicare data, the number of traditional suppliers of home medical equipment to Medicare beneficiaries has dropped 40.9 percent since July 2013. In addition, the number of unique locations (commonly referred to as rooftops) serving Medicare beneficiaries has declined by 38.7 percent during the same period.

—via AAHomecare (March 23, 2017)—Earlier today AAHomecare shared HME industry recommendations for fixing significant problems with CMS’s DMEPOS competitive bidding program with HHS Secretary Tom Price. The recommendations focus on six major areas:

—via AAHomecare, WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 22, 2017)—As first reported in late January, CMS included bundling CPAP devices, related accessories, and services on a monthly basis for Round 2019 of competitive bidding for HME, starting with five new CBAs specific to CPAP products only.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 9, 2017)—Legislation to prevent the application of bidding-derived pricing for CRT accessories was introduced in the Senate and House last week. The Senate bill, S. 486, introduced by lead sponsors Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Bob Casey (D-Pa.), and its House companion, H.R. 1361, introduced by Reps. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) and John Larson (D-Conn.) both show strong bipartisan support from initial co-sponsors.

LENEXA, Kan. (March 9, 2017)—Mediware Information Systems, Inc. is hosting a free webinar for attendees on Tuesday, April 4, 2017, at 1:00 Central, 2:00 EST, to learn how the new Trump administration may impact DME providers and the current competitive bidding program.

LAS VEGAS (March 1, 2017)—At Tuesday morning’s Washington Update, AAHomecare senior staff recounted important achievements from the last six months and discussed the prospects for additional gains for the HME industry in 2017. AAHomecare president and CEO Tom Ryan led off by describing 2017 as a year of opportunity for HME on the public policy front, thanks in part to new leadership at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 13, 2017)—CMS released last week guidance to the DME MACs for retroactive reimbursement adjustments for rural/non-bid area providers for equipment and services furnished between July 1–December 31, 2016. These adjustments follow provisions in last year’s CURES legislation providing a measure of relief for rural/non-bid area providers.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 8, 2017)—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has decided to temporarily delay moving forward with the next steps of the Round 2019 Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies (DMEPOS) Competitive Bidding Program to allow the new administration further opportunity to review the program.