Home medical equipment (HME) leaders had more than 140 meetings with senators, members of Congress and their staffers on May 15 during the American Association for Homecare’s (AAHomecare) Fly-In.
The event drew nearly 60 industry representatives, AAHomecare said in a May 15 update. HME advocates shared “the effects on their businesses and impacts on patients following the cuts in non-competitive bidding/non-rural areas, the need for market-based rates across all Medicare categories and payers, maintaining strong access to non-invasive ventilation and continuous glucose monitor devices, and moving Complex Rehab Technology legislation (H.R. 5371) forward.”
Sharing everyday challenges with legislators
“Tell your story and let your legislators know your pain points,” AAHomecare President/CEO Tom Ryan said to Fly-In participants at a May 14 dinner at the Capitol Hill Club. “Your face-to-face advocacy establishes credibility and adds urgency to our persistent lobbing work on Capitol Hill, and we need it to win on 75/25 and other issues.”
The association is asking Congress to extend the 75/25 blended rate for Medicare reimbursement in non-rural areas through 2024 to provide HME suppliers some funding support under a bevy of challenging conditions, which includes disruptions caused by the cyberattack on Change Healthcare in February.
AAHomecare’s informational web page on the 75/25 rate noted that Medicare funding cuts began on Jan. 1, 2024, resulting in reimbursement reductions that “average 20.1% across top product categories in non-rural areas, with many categories showing reductions of more than 25-30%.
“Suppliers of DME products like oxygen, wheelchairs, medical supplies, CPAP devices, and hospital beds are currently saddled with Medicare reimbursement rates that haven’t had a market-based adjustment since 2016 and don’t reflect rising product and operational costs facing healthcare providers nationwide. Without this relief, the disconnect between DME reimbursement rates and market reality will only widen — and ultimately threaten access to care for seniors, people with disabilities, and individuals with chronic respiratory conditions.”
H.R. 5371, the Choices for Increased Mobility Act of 2023, would give Medicare beneficiaries the opportunity to pay out of pocket to upgrade their ultralightweight wheelchairs to titanium or carbon fiber frames.
Image: istockphoto.com/YayaErnst
