Bid Program Draws Protestors in Florida, Stirs Letter to Congress
Protesters organized by the Florida Alliance of Home Care Services greeted Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius at the Medicare Fraud Summit this morning in Miami. They were wearing shirts and waving signs against the Round One re-bid results of Medicare's DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Program.
A FAHCS press release stated: "Medicare bidding will create fraud, because with 40 percent to 60 percent reductions in reimbursement, we can be almost assured that the only way to stay in business will be to commit fraud."
FAHCS President Roger Ribas spoke to reporters at the protest. "Medicare is not listening to the concerns of the elderly or the accredited and licensed DME providers," he said. "Congress delayed this program in 2008 because Medicare allowed out-of-area, inexperienced, financially bankrupt companies to win with desperate suicide bids. The only thing that has changed in the re-bid is that Medicare lowered their financial qualifications and the new rates are now much lower than manufacturer cost."
Even though it rained most of the morning, about 100 protesters lined the front of the James L. Knight Center in Miami. Many of the HME providers, employees and patients wore printed T-shirts with the words: "Save Our Patients — The Bid Is Fraud." A variety of signs also made the point: "No Experience + No Location + No Financials = BID WINNER."
Meanwhile in Washington, D.C., the American Association for Homecare delivered an open letter to leaders in Congress decrying the bidding program and revealing the support of almost 60 patient advocacy and home medical equipment groups. View the letter here.
AA Homecare urged Congress to pass H.R. 3790, a bill to repeal the bidding program in a budget-neutral manner. The bill currently has 252 co-sponsors in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“Our national, state and local organizations believe that this program is fundamentally flawed and will create significant obstacles to patient care while threatening the homecare infrastructure for our nation’s seniors and disabled,” wrote Tyler J. Wilson, AA Homecare president. “The home medical equipment sector is dedicated to working with Congress to ensure H.R. 3790 will replace the troubled bidding program with a series of payment reductions for home medical equipment providers, ensuring that CBO-projected savings are met.”
The letter reiterated providers’ concerns that the bidding program will only increase the nation’s growing health care costs in the long run. By hindering beneficiaries’ ability to stay home with trusted medical products and services, the bidding program will force patients into hospitals or nursing homes.
The list of organizations supporting H.R. 3790 includes:
1. Accessible Home Improvement of America
2. Accredited Medical Equipment Providers of America
3. Alabama Durable Medical Equipment Association
4. The ALS Association
5. American Association for Homecare
6. American Association of People with Disabilities
7. Arizona Medical Equipment Suppliers Association
8. Association of Indiana Home Medical Equipment Suppliers
9. Big Sky Association of Medical Equipment Suppliers
10. California Association of Medical Equipment Product Suppliers
11. Cerebral Palsy Association of Ohio
12. Colorado Association for Medical Equipment Services
13. Committee to Save Independent HME Suppliers, LLC
14. Florida Alliance of Home Care Services
15. Georgia Association of Medical Equipment Suppliers
16. Health Industry Distributors Association
17. Home Care Alliance of Virginia, Inc.
18. Illinois Association for Medical Equipment Services
19. Jersey Association of Medical Equipment Services
20. Kentucky Medical Equipment Suppliers Association
21. Ms. Wheelchair Virginia
22. Maryland National Capital Homecare Association
23. The MED Group
24. The MED Group Respiratory Network
25. The MED Group Rehab Network
26. Medical Equipment Suppliers Association
27. Michigan Home Health Association
28. Midwest Association for Medical Equipment Services
29. Muscular Dystrophy Association
30. National Association for Home Care & Hospice
31. National Association for the Support of Long Term Care
32. National Association of Independent Medical Equipment Suppliers
33. National Coalition for Assistive and Rehab Technology
34. National Council on Independent Living
35. National Emphysema/COPD Association
36. National Registry of Rehabilitation Technology Suppliers
37. National Spinal Cord Injury Association
38. Nationwide Respiratory
39. Nevada Association of Medical Product Suppliers
40. New England Medical Equipment Dealers Association
41. New York Medical Equipment Providers Association
42. North Carolina Association for Medical Equipment Services
43. Ohio Association of Medical Equipment Services
44. Ohio Council for Home Care and Hospice
45. Orthotics Prosthetics Groups of America
46. Pacific Association for Medical Equipment Services
47. Partners in Healthcare of Virginia LLC
48. Pennsylvania Association of Medical Suppliers
49. South Carolina Medical Equipment Suppliers Association
50. Texas Alliance of Homecare Services
51. U.S. Rehab
52. United Spinal Association
53. University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
54. VGM & Associates
55. The VGM Group Inc.
56. Virginia Association of Durable Medical Equipment Companies
57. West Virginia Medical Equipment Suppliers Association
58. Wisconsin Association of Medical Equipment Services