* You are viewing the archive for November, 2009
“Hi, I am calling because a new law pass by Congress that would force me to use a different home medical equipment supplier. I would like the law to remain as it has been so that we have free choices. Thank you.”
“Yes, I’m a senior and on Medicare and I do not like government gettin’ in to Medicare because they can’t even take care of Social Security. So if they try to take care medical equipment and everything, then the seniors and anyone that needs medical equipment are gonna be at loss because they will get the lowest bidder. Unlike when they bid for something they get somebody that will give them a kick back.”
“I am disabled, I’ve been disabled since I was I 40 years old. I’m 49 now. And I’m in a power wheelchair. And have been in a wheelchair completely for 8 years. 4 years in a manual chair and now 4 years in a power chair. I get my wheelchair and all the service from Advanced Medical, Advanced Medical Concepts in Owings Mill and from what I understand about this new law that passed by Congress, … Continue Reading
“I’m calling on behalf of my mother…. She receives home oxygen from Cornerstone Medical in Ohio. She has been receiving her equipment from them for several years, has been totally happy and we have received a letter that she may not be able to because of your competitive bidding law. This is very upsetting to someone in their eighties who has been given good service by the company that she’s with. That’s just to let … Continue Reading
“I’m calling about this new law that was passed by Congress. I don’t want to have to use a different medical equipment supplier than the one I’ve been using. They’re local, if I have a problem, they take care of my problems. I don’t appreciate having to go to some big conglomerate, that they have everything to say and we have nothing to say. I think that this should be changed, and we should keep these … Continue Reading
“Yes, I am very happy with the Clay Home Medical that we have here in Petersburg, Virginia. I don’t like the new law whatsoever, because I buy my dad’s colostomy supplies up there and you know it’s not fair for the government to regulate this or to try to push small business owners out. I’m not gonna try to go all the way to Richmond to give his colostomy supplies. If they change it and like … Continue Reading
“I don’t want the government in being involved in what I can use to make my last few years on earth complimentary easy to care for. My oxygen people are great. They call me when I call or come to me when I need them or what ever. So let’s leave things as they are and let the government stay out of the health care business. I think there are things they should do and not … Continue Reading
CRE filed a petition with CMS demanding they disclose the Secretary’s “Financial Standards” for DME suppliers.
As CRE exlains, unless the financial qualification standards are disclosed, “bidders are potentially subject to various forms of discrimination, bias, favoritism, cronyism, and other abuse of agency discretion – all of which will go undetected since there are no publicly available standards against which the agency’s financial qualification decisions can be measured.”
The petition requests that CMS “suspend initiation of the DMEPOS Competitive Bidding program until after the agency publishes their specific financial qualification policy.”
“I’m required to be on oxygen 24 hours a day. I have very good service with Med-Ox, and there’s no other convenient or equal of supplier nearby, and when 3 years are over, I’m sunk, because I won’t have any place to go. The new legislation to make things more competitive is a disaster, and I hope you will do something to correct the situation for those of us that are dependant on our oxygen suppliers.”… Continue Reading
“I’m really very disappointed that we will be changed, might be changes in the Medicare. I get home equipment and I really appreciate the 24 hour service calls that we get. I’ve several times had problems with my equipment and was able to call somebody and get help, and either had somebody come out or help me over the phone, and somebody to check the machines and stuff is very important, and people updating you and being able to pass … Continue Reading
“I am a lady of 76 years old. I have worked 40 some years. I wanted to work till I was 70 because of having better insurance and better, higher income and I had to retire before I reached that age. I have since had numerous medical bills. I fell, I broke my neck. I had to go through all kinds of physical therapy to try to learn to walk and the doctors are doing their best so that I … Continue Reading
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I am the owner of a DME billing and consulting company. I have worked with multiple Suppliers and Accrediting bodies over the past two years in particular. Our company made sure our Suppliers were well trained and prepared for Accreditation. And, for the most part, I had no problems with Suppliers or the Accrediting bodies. However, I cannot understand the fiasco we have seen taking place.
A part of me blames Suppliers who have known for over two years about mandatory accreditation and did nothing to prepare, thinking they could “throw something together” at … Continue Reading
“Well my problem is I just got the information now that there’s liable to be some changes and I’m not so sure that I an crazy about them. And I have been having emphysema and I’ve been taking oxygen for the since the beginning of last year and I will like more information of what’s going on on your part. So please give me some information.”… Continue Reading
“I just wanna pass along that I am not for the competitive bidding process. I feel this will gravely impact the service that we currently receive in regard to oxygen here at our home and I think with these new means that you’re looking at implementing in regard to the level of service, not being able to have the opportunity to choose our own providers is a very poor aspect and I thought this was a … Continue Reading
“I live in Groveport, Ohio which is kind of in the country. And I have had such good service from Cornerstone for my medical equipement. They have been friendly, they have been helpful, they have have met my emergencies, and they have quality equipment. I don’t know what criteria to the government is using to decide who’s gonna supply my medical equipment. However, I would like to say that if the equipment isn’t top notch then … Continue Reading
“I’m calling about the competitive bidding and it’s not going to serve me very well for us to be changed because we lose our freedom to choose our own medical equipment providers and I’m satisfied with the service that I get now. So how will this new change help us? How will it help us? I would like to know that. And I’m not happy with the change, with the law that has been changed. and … Continue Reading
“I’m only calling because I receive my medical equipment in the mail through a medical company and I have had a very successful rate with the medical company that is prescribing my medicine. I have sleep apnea and they supply to me. I have…I’m sure you know what that is.Its when I … Continue Reading
“I am against competitive bidding. I feel that this makes a monopoly to certain companies and the smaller companies are left out in the cold, and I like the oxygen company I have right now and I do not want to be switched. So I’m totally against competitive bidding. It’s … Continue Reading
Feds ignored Medicare scam warnings for years
By KELLI KENNEDY The Associated Press
Friday, November 13, 2009; 8:57 PM
MIAMI — For three years, the federal agency in charge of preventing Medicare fraud repeatedly ignored internal watchdog warnings about swindlers stealing millions of dollars by scamming several programs, documents show.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services received roughly 30 warnings from inspectors over three years – mostly under the Bush administration – but didn’t respond to half of them, even after repeated letters, according to records provided to The Associated Press by U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley’s office.
A July 2008 … Continue Reading
“As a home bound senior citizen, the equipments that I have in my home that’s been provided with different people here in the community that I live in and since I can’t get out of my house, it is imperative that I have somebody that can come in and be with me and be my therapist and show me how to use different things to help me get around my house so that I am not … Continue Reading
“I’m calling on behalf of my husband…who has to live on oxygen. The respiratory consultant here on Springs Street in Newton, New Jersey, informs my husband that because of a bidding that you had in Washington there, they will no longer be able to give him his oxygen. Now I wanna know why y’all passed it through already? What is the problem? I didn’t think we were gonna put the health insurance through, I didn’t think it went through. Now, he’s on Medicare. We can’t afford to pay any more on this, and why are y’all … Continue Reading
“I’m a registered voter and I am totally against them changing the medical supplier for our equipment at home. I think it’s a crime to change the Medicare. They’ve already cut us to the hilt. Things that we’ve got to Medicare and made prescription drugs now, which are senior citizen and they’re disabled, can’t afford to get it. I’m totally against you dictating to us whose supplier that we should have. Thank you, and have a good … Continue Reading
“I am utterly dismayed to find that my use of Oxygen One of Waukesha may be forcefully taken from me and I feel like I’m being dumped in a middle of a lake and I don’t know how to swim. Anyone on oxygen knows how scary it can be when your supplier is not reliable cause without him you cannot breath. It’s reassuring to know he sees you as a person and not just a customer. I’ve now been on oxygen for about 4 years and when I began I had regular visits from a respiratory … Continue Reading
“I just got a booklet from where I get my oxygen from, Cornerstone. I’m very pleased with it and they tell me that the Congress passing the latest law that I may not be able to get my supplies from Cornerstone. I think that is terrible. This isn’t Russia, this isn’t no communist place, we have a right to choose our own place where we get our own medical supplies, … Continue Reading
“I would prefer to have my strips for my diabetic testing provided by a local and not a large national business where I won’t get personal service and I do not like this Health Care Reform bill that’s going through Congress now and will affect most of us in a negative way and the bill that’s to pay for this is to large for us to absorb.”… Continue Reading
“I received my diabetic supplies right on time as usual along with the letter stating that according to the new law we would be forced to use different home medical equipment supplier and I was wondering if this means that they already now that we will not be able to use Personal Care Products or if we would be notified who else will be delivering them or just what we are supposed to do. … Continue Reading
November 11, 2009
by Astrid Fiano, DOTmed News Writer
The Senate Judiciary Committee held a recent hearing on the problems of health care fraud. According Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the scale of health care fraud in America today is “staggering.” “According to conservative estimates,” the Senator said in his opening statement, “about three percent of the funds spent on health care are lost to fraud — more than $60 billion dollars a year. In the Medicare program alone, the Government Accountability Office estimates that more than $10 billion dollars was lost to fraud just last year.”
“My name is Jean and I’ve been getting breast prosthesis in bras and Medicare has paid for 80% of them and they tell me know that maybe we will be, won’t be able to go to the places we have been, that we have to go some other place that bids the lowest for everything and I really would hate to see that happen. The provider that we have now is Nipple Health Care and they do such a great job of fitting bras and prosthesis and helping you out when you feel kind of low … Continue Reading
“I’m calling about this competitive bidding and I really don’t understand why they are doing this. They’re going to eliminate the smaller oxygen companies and this country was founded on small businesses, not just your big giants, like you take General Motors and Chrysler who have to have bail outs. You don’t see the small owners coming with their hands out and I’m happy with my oxygen provider and I really don’t think they’re being fair … Continue Reading
“Yes, I enjoy getting all my oxygen things from Liberty and I don’t think anyone should have the right to tell me where I can get it from. I think that should be be my choice. I’ve been a taxpayer for my whole life but now that I need help I would like to have my own expression of where I do get it from. I don’t think anyone should … Continue Reading
“This is Mary…calling from Wisconsin. I have oxygen and I’m not very happy about the new law that Congress passed about competitive bidding. I am been with the same company for going on 4 years and I’m very happy with them. I’m familiar with all the people that work there. Very happy. It would be terrible if I had to switch. Be really hard. So, I hope something happen on this. Thank you. Goodbye. “… Continue Reading
“I’m a taxpayer. I’m very concerned about cutting out small businesses and patient services by this lowest bid for oxygen and other support systems for the elderly. My dad is 92 and my step mom is 85. We use these resources and having them close an accessible with the local businesses, we feel really care and are helpful. This is not the place cut out fraud. This isn’t where the fraud is. You need to be … Continue Reading
“I’ve been on Oxygen for several years now. When originally went on it my private insurance is paying for it and they require I go with a certain company. The company was horrible, it did not provide services. When my doctor ordered me to go on, the first time was at night when my doctor wanted me to go on the tanks during the day too, they never got around … Continue Reading
One of my customers brought us a letter they had received from CMS stating that their records show that she purchased/rented medical equipment and/or supplies through Medicare but because her supplier hasn’t met the new requirements to become Medicare approved, starting 10-1-09, the supplier can no longer bill Medicare for equipment/supplies. It then goes on to say that the beneficiary can call 1800MEDICARE and their representative will help them find a new supplier. I have talked to NSC: my supplier number is … Continue Reading
“I’m calling because my husband…is on oxygen, and if Congress do something to not keep this out and not have the advantage that we have now, it’s gonna be a critical time for him. I think it’s a disgrace that Congress is trying to keep down the use of oxygen in the homes when it’s needed. They better put the money, they take it out of their big pockets, and put it towards Medicare instead of … Continue Reading
“…I’m on Medicare and I’m also on liquid oxygen which is delivered here to my home company called [Gooles?] which is a local company and I had pamphlet, been told some information that when you’re on oxygen, you know, Medicare will only pay for so much or you’re limit what you can do. And I know a lot of people that are on oxygen where some of the companies will not provide full service for them. I’m lucky, mine does … Continue Reading
“My adopted mom is disabled she has a wheelchair a walker and a hospital bed and is on oxygen due to multiple health problems. I don’t appreciate Medicare cutting her off or trying to cut her off or going to the lowest bid. I think thats terrible, its horrible. Patients should have the right to go to whom she wants and the lowest bidder and it will probably be a lousy person with … Continue Reading
“Yes I was calling, I’m concerned with competitive bidding law that congress has put into effect that we won’t be able to use the manufactures that we want to use for Medicare benefits. I’m apposed to it . I want to be able to use my own Boardman medical supply company because of their service they’ve always given us and I don’t wanna be told who we can and cannot use. So if you can please take … Continue Reading
“…I don’t idea of you giving out to the lowest bidder. I like USA Drug. They treat us very good and help you very much and especially that’s a great help and we depend on that for your life line and they have always been real good and I don’t think we should have to fight for what we deserve.”… Continue Reading
