A bill newly in the U.S. House of Representatives seeks to delay the start of Medicare competitive bidding for ostomy and urological supplies for five years.
Rep. Greg Murphy, M.D. (R-N.C.) and Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) introduced the Access to Medical Supplies Act on Oct. 9.
Ostomy supplies, urological supplies, and hydrophilic urinary catheters are currently included in Round 2028 of Medicare’s competitive bidding program for durable medical equipment, prosthetic, orthotics and supplies (DMEPOS). The supplies are scheduled to be part of a national Remote Item Delivery (RID) competitive bidding program.
Round 2028 is scheduled to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2028. The window for bidder registration opens Dec. 1, 2026, with the bid window scheduled to open Jan. 5, 2027.
In an Oct. 9 bulletin, the American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) said, “The pause would give the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), with input from stakeholders, time to fully analyze how the change would affect patients. The bill also creates a technical expert panel to study the impact of adding these supplies to the program and a demonstration project to test the effects before CMS makes a final decision.”
“Before CMS enacts a program that reshapes how patients receive highly personalized medical supplies, it should understand exactly what is at stake,” said Tom Ryan, president and CEO of AAHomecare, said on Oct. 9. “Reps. Murphy and Schneider’s bipartisan bill allows CMS to study the impact, test it and hear from patients and providers before making changes that could disrupt access across the country. We urge every member of Congress to support this bill and protect patient access.”
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