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Home Health & Hospice Week

Studies & Surveys:

BEWARE NEW REPORT ON PMD PRICING

Published on Mon Oct 08, 2007

Industry: Feds compare apples to oranges.

A study that sent federal researchers searching for power wheelchairs on the Web could lead the way to more reimbursement cuts.

That's the concern of the Washington, DC-based Power Mobility Coalition and others representing Medicare-certified suppliers of power mobility devices (PMDs).

Findings: After collecting and analyzing prices of power wheelchairs from the Internet sites of power wheelchair suppliers during the first quarter of 2007, the HHS Office of Inspector General concluded that "Medicare fee schedule amounts for power wheelchairs were 45 percent higher than median Internet prices available to consumers."

"Medicare and its beneficiaries could have achieved savings during the first quarter of 2007 had power wheelchairs been reimbursed at median Internet prices available to consumers," the agency noted in a news release announcing the findings.

But the report's lack of specificity leaves some industry watchdogs warning that such sweeping conclusions are unwarranted.

"Who are these Internet suppliers?" asks PMC's Eric Sokol, noting that the report fails to offer detailed information about the suppliers surveyed for the report. "Are these credible suppliers? Would they be able to meet Medicare and accreditation standards?"

The report compares the current Medicare fee schedule amounts paid for power wheelchairs to the direct-to-consumer prices noted on the Web sites of unspecified suppliers.

But consumer pricing does not include overhead costs of brick-and-mortar suppliers or costs associated with "extras" required by Medicare, such as product delivery by trained technicians, wheelchair fitting and safety education, stakeholders say.

"Do we really want Medicare beneficiaries entrusting their health to a presence on the Internet?" asks Sokol.

Resource: "A Comparison of Medicare Program and Consumer Internet Prices for Power Wheel-chairs" (OEI-04-07-00160) is at www.oig.hhs.gov.

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