Posted by: Rob Brant
on Jun 11, 2009
...support needed via "Dear Colleague Letter" DEADLINE: Tomorrow, Friday, June 12th at noon
Yesterday, Congressman Kendrick Meek (D-FL) and Mike Ross (D-AR), announced a "Sign On" letter to gain support for new oxygen reform policy. A draft proposal of the letter was first released last week at AAHomecare's Washington Conference and contains the majority of the oxygen reform concept, created by their New Oxygen Coalition (NOC), which I participated in.
Posted by: Rob Brant
on Jun 05, 2009
"Medicare told me they resolved the problems from last year's competitive bidding program, but if you hear differently at the PAOC meeting, I want to know about it"
That's what Congresswoman Ginny Brown-Waite (R-Lake County, FL), who serves on the Health Subcommittee of Ways and Means told me on Wednesday afternoon during a meeting in her Washington office.
Unfortunately for her constituents in the round one Orlando MSA, little has changed. The Competitive Bidding program in DMEPOS is still a bid without financial accountability that will still allow unqualified companies to low ball bid to achieve their goal: not the ability to continue serving patients, but to sell their company after winning the bid.
Posted by: Rob Brant
on Jun 04, 2009
Attendee at the PAOC meeting, happening today in Baltimore, MD
This morning at the PAOC meeting in Baltimore, CMS released a tentatitive timeline which announced that Competitive Bidding would not be implemented until January 2011. This is a surprise and relief for the industry which anticipated a rush to apply the first round MSA's by the Spring/Summer of 2010
Posted by: Rob Brant
on May 27, 2009
Another argument of DMEPOS Competitive Bidding has already been achieved: The reduction of the majority of providers.
Last year when Medicare published the 44 oxygen bid winners in the Miami MSA, our organization recorded the number of oxygen providers listed on Medicare's website for the area (Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties). In April 2008 there were 501 oxygen providers listed in the Miami MSA. Today medicare.gov states that there are only 388 oxygen providers listed in the Miami MSA, a reduction of 113 providers.
Posted by: Rob Brant
on May 12, 2009
Before the bid window was opened in 2007, the buzz around "How to Bid" seminars was that the 1999 Demonstration Project in Polk County and the 2001 Demonstration Project in San Antonio boasted a 17%-20% savings to Medicare's DMEPOS program. Despite the fact that in the Polk County Demonstration Project: two bid winners filed for bankruptcy, only half of the 16 bid winners in Round One of the Demonstration Project decided to bid again in Round Two, and none of the bid winners in either Demonstration Project were required to be accredited, the Demonstration Project is the basis for running and re-running the same flawed competitive bidding program.
Posted by: Rob Brant
on Apr 16, 2009
Despite actions from 84 legilsators to recind the Interim Final Rules, Medicare released the following statement the program will move forward without delay.
CMS also states that in the upcoming weeks, they will release further guidance on the timeline for and bidding requirements related to the Round 1 re-bid.
Posted by: Rob Brant
on Apr 16, 2009
Interim Final Rule is likely to take effect.
After a very strong effort by providers in the Round One Competitive Bidding states, 83 legislators signed Congresswoman Betty Sutton's (D-OH) "Dear Colleague" letter to rescind the Interim Final Rule, before it takes effect Saturday, April 18th.
Posted by: Rob Brant
on Oct 31, 2008
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule with comment for the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) for Calendar Year (CY) 2009 on October 30, 2008. The release states that a comment period will last 60 days (through December 30,2008). The 1459 page document addresses new policies of the MIPPA, from initial preventative examinations to speech language pathology. Pages 837 - 859 relate to Section 144(b) of the MIPPA: Repeal of transfer of Title for Oxygen Equipment. A link to those pages is available below.
Posted by: Rob Brant
on Oct 15, 2008
Tagged in: Untagged
Tonight, all Home Medical Equipment Providers will have an opportunity to give thanks to our U.S. Representatives who acted for our industry, our businesses, and our families.
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Lincoln Diaz-Balart, Mario Diaz-Balart, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Ron Klein are all having events tonight in South Florida. Each of the events are importaant, but the most important are the ones hosted by home Medical Equipment business owners, for Mario and Lincoln Diaz-Balart in Coral Gables, FL and Debbie Wasserman Schultz in Davie, FL.
Posted by: Rob Brant
on Aug 01, 2008
Tagged in: Untagged
The repeal of Transfer of Ownership of Oxygen Equipment was thought to be the most important aspect of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (MIPPA) for all providers. Most oxygen providers assumed it meant a continuation of the oxygen rental payment which is scheduled to stop for many patients, 5 months from today on January 1, 2009.
blast-legionary
closed-execution
