WASHINGTON--Legislators around the country are joining the HME industry's fight against power mobility reimbursement cuts.

Last week, six representatives from Ohio urged HHS to postpone CMS' new power mobility reimbursements, set to take effect Nov. 15 (see HomeCare Monday, Oct. 9). The fee schedule calls for cuts of more than 40 percent for some equipment, a move the legislators say will restrict patient access.

"Trying to save dollars at the expense of someone's quality of life is not good policy," Reps. Tim Ryan, Ted Strickland, Dennis Kucinich, Sherrod Brown, Marcy Kaptur and Stephanie Tubbs wrote in a letter to the agency.

"It is imperative to establish a new fee schedule using rational methodology ... so that beneficiaries with [amyotrophic lateral sclerosis] and other debilitating diseases that progress over time will not be without the necessary mobility when they need it most," the Ohio representatives continued.

One of the largest power wheelchair manufacturers in the country, Invacare Corp., is based in Elyria, Ohio.

In Pennsylvania, home of Pride Mobility Products, Sens. Arlen Specter and Rick Santorum also asked HHS to postpone the fee schedule.

In the Oct. 13 letter, the senators noted they had previously warned CMS that reductions in excess of 12 percent could restrict patients' access to equipment. "We are concerned that the published payment rates include reductions from 26 to 43 percent, which are significantly higher than that amount," the letter read.

The Pennsylvania lawmakers have been strong advocates for other power mobility issues in the past, and most recently pushed for a delay of the new power mobility codes and local coverage determination, originally scheduled to take effect Oct. 1 (see HomeCare Monday, Sept. 26).

In South Dakota, the state's entire congressional delegation sent a letter to HHS and CMS officials Wednesday saying they were concerned that many providers in the state would not be able to continue to supply PMDs after the new fee schedule takes effect.

"Rural states, like South Dakota, face unique challenges in ensuring that all Medicare beneficiaries have convenient access to the array of benefits included in the Medicare program. One of these challenges is the limited number of power mobility device suppliers," said the letter, signed by Sens. Tim Johnson and John Thune and Rep. Stephanie Herseth.

One of the state's largest providers, WestMed Rehab, said it will no longer provide power wheelchairs to Medicare beneficiaries after Nov. 15.

The Rapid City-based HME is the only provider of Medicare-funded complex rehab technology services for 300 miles in any direction, according to CEO Tim Pederson.

"Ten years ago we had three or four providers of these types of services in western South Dakota. Today we are down to a single provider," said Pederson, who also is vice chairman of the American Association for Homecare's Rehab and Assistive Technology Council. "At the very least we will need to be extremely selective about who we choose to service. It may be that the only people who receive these types of services are those who can afford to pay for them out of pocket."

The ITEM (Independence Through Enhancement of Medicare and Medicaid) Coalition, a consumer-led group, also sent a letter to HHS last week asking the agency to reconsider the cuts and for clarifications to PMD Local Coverage Determination standards.

While the latest LCD says a beneficiary must be unable to stand and pivot independently to qualify for a Group 3 device, many who can--like those with multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease and cerebral palsy--still need a Group 3 device to complete activities of daily living, ITEM said.