Discussion Forum

Editor’s Note:  CRE’s letter to the National Coalition on Health Care (NCHC) regarding their ill-conceived support for CMS’ competitive bidding program is attached here.

CRE will publish, verbatim, any response from NCHC in this space.

Below is the text of the letter to John Rother, President and CEO of the National Coalition on Health Care:

Re:      NCHC’s Support for Non-Competitive Bidding for Durable Medical Equipment

Dear Mr. Rother:

I am perplexed by NCHC’s decision to support expansion of CMS’ bidding-style acquisition program for Durable Medical (DME) in the “Curbing Costs, Improving Care” document. I do not question NCHC’s support for expanding the CMS program … Continue Reading

From: HME News

WASHINGTON – NAIMES has scheduled a virtual fly-in for Dec. 5 to build support for H.R. 6490, a bill that would replace the current competitive bidding program with a market-pricing program (MPP).

In what its calling “Operation STOP NCB,” NAIMES staff and board members will be in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 4 and 5 to visit the offices of key lawmakers. The association asks that providers follow up those visits with calls to their lawmakers on Dec. 5 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“Let’s make Dec. 5 our DME Day in Washington by ringing the phones and making a … Continue Reading

Editor’s Note: The Center for Regulatory Effectiveness stated that HHS was likely to “vastly expand” Medcare’s competive bidding to other types of medical equipment and services as explained here.  Now major organizations, in deeply misguided if well intentioned efforts to save money, are supporting an expansion of competitive bidding.  As previous noted, The National Coalition for Health Care is supporting an expansion of the program over 240 academicians called the antithesis of science.

More recently, the Center for American Progress has released its “Senior Protection Plan” (attached here) which states that the federal government should:
Expand competitive bidding … Continue Reading

Editor’s Note:  CMS’ Medicare Learning Network (MLN) Matters Number 8080 is attached here.  The document’s Key Points are printed below:

•  Beneficiaries may choose to pick up diabetic testing supplies in person from retail pharmacy locations or other local supplier storefronts or have them delivered to their homes. Once the program is implemented, only NMO contract suppliers will be reimbursed by Medicare Part B for providing diabetic testing supplies delivered to beneficiaries’ residences. If the supplies are shipped or delivered by any means to the beneficiary’s home, then the supplier that furnished the supplies must be a NMO contract … Continue Reading

From: United Spinal Association

Say No to Bidding– Support HR 6490

The bill with the funny name: HR 6490 – The Medicare DMEPOS Market Pricing Program Act of 2012, has some serious benefits for people with disabilities who cannot get critical equipment and services under Medicare’s current bidding program.

United Spinal Association needs your support to ensure HR 6490 is passed, so that Medicare beneficiaries––including wheelchair users and other people with disabilities––have access to high quality, durable medical equipment (DME), like wheelchairs, and other devices.

This type of equipment is far from a luxury, it’s a necessity! The right mobility equipment goes a long … Continue Reading