WASHINGTON--The proposed rule on national competitive bidding for DME is now in the "clearance stage," a CMS official announced last Wednesday at a Home Health, Hospice & DME Open Door Forum.

The official did not comment on exactly when the proposal--which will detail how the bidding program will be implemented when it begins in 2007--might be released, but some insiders say it could be before September, when it is slated for publication.

Also last week--gearing up for a push to soften effects of the coming bid program-- the American Association for Homecare held the first meeting of its newly created Small Business Committee, formed to focus on issues that will affect small providers under competitive bidding. The organization has argued that any qualified provider should be able to compete in the bid process and that "CMS should not limit the number of providers if they can meet prescribed prices and quality standards."

"We're looking to use this as a grassroots group [to influence change on the policy]," said AAHomecare Chair Tom Ryan. According to Ryan, the committee will work with the association's regulatory, legislative policy and executive committees, as well as with the government's Program Advisory and Oversight Committee--a 22-member industry panel that is charged with advising CMS on competitive bidding implementation.

"We need to work with the PAOC on competitive bidding, but we also need to look at legislative proposals to protect small providers," Ryan said.

Among possible legislative fixes, AAHomecare is soliciting support for forthcoming legislation from Rep. David Hobson, R-Ohio, that would amend several sections of the Medicare Modernization Act and make a series of changes to its DME bidding mandate. Among other things, the bill is expected to include small provider protection by allowing any Medicare Part B supplier that meets the quality standards and submits a bid for an item to provide that item at the final bid rate.

The MMA mandates competitive bidding to begin in 10 top metropolitan statistical areas in 2007 and expand to 80 MSAs in 2009. "If you have all of your business in [one of these] MSAs and rely on Medicare, you're going to be taking a lot of providers and putting them out of business," Ryan said.

Members of the AAHomecare committee include: Ryan, president and CEO, Homecare Concepts, Farmingdale, N.Y.; Kay Cox, president and CEO, AAHomecare, Washington; Ray Darcey, AAHomecare vice chair and vice president, Sentara Enterprises, Chesapeake, Va.; Asela Cuervo, attorney and AAHomecare consultant, Washington; Karyn Estrella, executive director, New England Medical Equipment Dealers Association, New Bedford, Mass.; Jeff Wills, CFO, Canadian Valley Medical Solutions, Oklahoma City; George Kucka, president, Fair Meadows Home Health, Schererville, Ind.; James Clark, president, Clark Respiratory, Catskill, N.Y.; Tim Pederson, president and CEO, WestMed Rehab, Rapid City, S.D.; John Gallagher, vice president, government relations, The VGM Group, Waterloo, Iowa; Jeff Woodham, vice president, information, The Med Group, Lubbock, Texas; and Georgetta Blackburn, director of compliance, Blackburn's Physicians Pharmacy, Tarentum, Pa.

The ad hoc committee will meet again this week. The next meeting of the PAOC is scheduled for the fall.

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