Jeff Lock, Sullivan, MO
July 17th, 2009 at 11:27
Competative Bidding & Medicare Advantage plans are a dis-advantage to beneficiaries needing DME equipment. My company just this mornign told a sweet couple looking for a wheelchair that our company was not a provider for the Medicare Advantage Plan they had. Truly a SAD situation because I do not know how this couple is going to get what the wife is needing. They just pulled out of our parking lot more lost than when they came in.
Now how is Competative Bidding going to fix this? No way it can. Limiting providers will be a truly a sad, sad, situation. Homecare is not the problem to our healthcare crisis – Homecare is the answer. DME is just over 1% of the entire Medicare budget. Congress,please wake-up!!! DME cannot sustain anymore cuts. Many of the Rehab (custom wheelchair)providers have already closed down their wheelchair operations. Oxygen will be next.
The answer is to fund DME and Respiratory. Mandatory Accreditation, Surety Bonds, and Site-visits will be enough to police the Fraud and Abuse. Limiting providers and funding will only cost our healthcare system more. Proper wheelchair seating and positioning does prevent pressure ulcers and needless, expensive surgeries as well as costly hospital and nursing home stays.
Competative Bidding and Medicare Advantage plans our poor systems because they limit competition & decrease the level of services available. Thus, we have many fewer providers in business. So many DME jobs are going to be lost while nursing homes and hospitals will have to expand to house these beneficiaries who can nolonger remain at home. Once again we’re driving up our nations healthcare cost. Remember DME is only 1.09% of the entire Medicare budget. DME is the most affordable healthcare available. Fund DME & eliminate Competative Bidding.
