HCFA announces second competitive bidding site
HCFA announces second competitive bidding site
By MATTHEW HAY
HHBR Washington Correspondent
BALTIMORE The Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA; Baltimore) announced last week that the second competitive bidding demonstration for durable medical equipment prosthetics orthotics and supplies (DMEPOS) will be launched Jan. 1, 2001, in San Antonio, TX. The agency’s announcement claims that the overall savings average for five products included in the first demonstration in Polk County, FL, launched in October 1999, was 17% and as high as 30% for some products.
The San Antonio demonstration will be the second of three authorized by the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA). HCFA’s announcement was made despite pleas by the newly-formed American Association for Homecare (AAH; Alexandria, VA) and others to examine the impact of the Polk County demonstration on beneficiary satisfaction and health outcomes prior to implementing any more demonstrations.
According to AAH, the Polk County demonstration has created numerous problems. In addition, one of the winning bidders has already filed Chapter 13, creating confusion among Medicare beneficiaries.
The San Antonio demonstration will operate in Bexar, Comal, and Guadalupe counties and will include oxygen supplies, hospital beds, manual wheelchairs, non-customized orthotic devices (including off-the-shelf items such as braces and splints), and albuterol sulfate and other nebulizer inhalers.
In its announcement, HCFA claims that Medicare allowances for some of these items, such as albuterol sulfate, were found by Office of Inspector General (Washington) studies to be three times supplier’s acquisition costs. It added that the drug can be purchased through mail-order and retail pharmacies for substantially less than what Medicare pays.
The agency also claims that private insurers paid at least 14% less than Medicare for semi-electric hospital beds.
The Clinton Administration has repeatedly sought an expanded competitive bidding authority, the last request coming as part of the administration’s FY01 budget.
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