Home Health & Hospice Week

Don't overlook these important competitive bidding proposals in the physician pay rule. Whether you participate in the upcoming relaunch of Medicare competitive bidding or not, the program set to take effect in 2010 could give you some extra burdens. In the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' latest physician fee schedule proposed rule, CMS floats beneficiary notice requirements for all durable medical equipment suppliers in bid areas. Under the bidding program, a grandfathering clause allows suppliers that are currently serving patients to continue furnishing DME and oxygen equipment. Suppliers should remember there are limitations to the grandfathering clause, including that it lasts only as long as a capped rental item's last month (see Eli's HCW, Vol. XVII, No. 20, p. 156). Old: Previously, CMS told suppliers they could pick and choose which items to grandfather. New: Now, CMS wants to require that if a supplier chooses to grandfather for an item, [...]