CMS Announces Next Phase in Medicare DMEPOS Competitive Bidding
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced the bidding timeline for Round 2 Recompete and the national mail-order recompete of the Medicare Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics and Supplies (DMEPOS) Competitive Bidding Program, as required by law. CMS also launched a comprehensive bidder education program. This program is designed to ensure that DMEPOS suppliers interested in bidding receive the information and assistance they need to submit complete bids in a timely manner.
The DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Program changes the amount Medicare pays for certain DMEPOS while maintaining beneficiary access to items and services and quality of care. The program replaces the outdated, inflated fee-schedule prices Medicare paid for these items with lower, more accurate prices to help Medicare and its beneficiaries save money while ensuring access to quality equipment, supplies, and services. This program also helps limit fraud and abuse in Medicare.
“Today marks another step forward in ensuring access to quality health care for millions of Medicare beneficiaries,” said CMS Administrator Marilyn Tavenner. “The DMEPOS competitive bidding program has proven to be effective in obtaining fair prices for quality equipment like wheelchairs and walkers.”
The Medicare DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Program has saved more than $580 million in the nine markets at the end of the Round 1 Rebid’s 3-year contract period due to lower payments and decreased unnecessary utilization. Additional savings are being achieved as part of the Affordable Care Act’s expansion of the competitive bidding program—at the end of the first year of Round 2 and the national mail-order programs, Medicare has saved approximately $2 billion. Furthermore, the monitoring data show that the implementation is going smoothly with few inquiries or complaints and no changes to beneficiary health outcomes.
CMS is required by section 1847(b)(3) of the Social Security Act to recompete contracts under the DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Program at least once every three years. Suppliers must then compete to become a Medicare contract supplier by submitting bids to provide certain items in competitive bidding areas. The new, lower payment amounts resulting from the competitions replace the fee schedule amounts for the bid items in these areas.
The Competitive Bidding Implementation Contractor (CBIC) is the official information source for bidders and the focal point for bidder education. The CBIC website, www.dmecompetitivebid.com, features an array of important and helpful resources for suppliers, including the bidding timeline, bidding rules, short instructional videos, user guides, fact sheets, checklists, and bid preparation worksheets. To sign up to receive important competitive bidding announcements and reminders, suppliers are encouraged to subscribe to E-Mail Updates on the CBIC website.
In addition to viewing the information on the CBIC website, suppliers are encouraged to call the CBIC customer service center toll-free at 1-877-577-5331 with their questions. During registration and bidding periods, the customer service center will be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Eastern Time.
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