ALEXANDRIA, Va. — To meet the challenges of the coming weeks and months, the American Association for Homecare has assembled a coalition of 19 industry and consumer advocates whose goal is to fight the spread of competitive bidding, the association announced July 12. The Coalition for Access to Medical Services, or CAMSET, is dedicated to protecting patients' right to choose their Medicare service providers, AAHomecare said.

“CAMSET is concerned that national competitive bidding will undermine quality of care, restrict patients' choice of service providers, stifle the development of new technology and drive small businesses out of operation,” the association explained.

Coalition members include AAHomecare, the American Association of People with Disabilities, the Advanced Medical Technology Association, the Coalition of Respiratory Care Manufacturers, the Coalition of Seating and Positioning Manufacturers, the Coalition of Wound Care Manufacturers, the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Health Task Force, the Diabetic Product Suppliers Coalition, the Health Industry Distributors Association, the Indiana Medical Device Manufacturers Council, the National Association for Home Care, the Home Medical Equipment Association of America, the Medical Device Manufacturers Association and the Paralyzed Veterans of America.

More information about CAMSET is available at www.protectaccess.org.

For breaking news, go to www.homecaremonday.com, the electronic news service of the home medical equipment industry.