Act Now: DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Program Underway

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) began accepting bids for the Round One Rebid of the Medicare Competitive Bidding Program for durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies (DMEPOS) on Oct. 21. Qualified DME suppliers in nine areas have until Dec. 21 to submit bids.

Registration to participate in the Round One Rebid is nearing an end. Suppliers that wish to submit bids must be registered by Nov. 4, 9 p.m. EST.

DMEPOS suppliers that wished to participate in the program were required to be accredited by Sept. 30 and bonded by Oct. 2. Currently 93 percent of all medical equipment suppliers nationwide have met Medicare’s accreditation requirements, according to CMS.

Note: H.R. 3663 extended the deadline for the accreditation requirement for pharmacies supplying DME from Sept. 30 to Dec. 31.

To facilitate bidding and ensure a favorable outcome, CMS has made a number of changes to the program, including:

• Early Comprehensive Bidder Education Program that began in August 2009 in an effort to help suppliers understand all aspects of the bid submission and evaluation processes.
• User-friendly Bid Submission Process that provides a new online bidding system, upgraded Request for Bids instructions, and a special process for suppliers to have their financial bid documents reviewed for completeness.
• Enhanced Scrutiny of Bidders that includes up-front licensure verification, accreditation of subcontractors, and bidder disclosure of subcontractors.
• Updated Bid Evaluation Process that requires suppliers to meet financial standards and evaluates bidders’ capacity and expansion plans to ensure there are enough suppliers to provide beneficiaries with ready access to quality items and services in the nine areas.

Round One Rebid will occur in the following areas:

• Cincinnati – Middletown (Ohio, Ky., and Ind.)
• Cleveland – Elyria – Mentor (Ohio)
• Charlotte – Gastonia – Concord (N.C. and S.C.)
• Dallas – Fort Worth – Arlington (Texas)
• Kansas City (Miss. and Kan.)
• Miami – Fort Lauderdale – Pompano Beach (Fla.)
• Orlando (Fla.)
• Pittsburgh (Penn.)

Suppliers that have completed the bidder registration process may access the online bidding system and begin the process of submitting their bids. Information and materials may be found on the DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Program Web site. A special toll-free help line (1-877-577-5331) also has been established to assist bidders with questions and concerns.

CMS expects to announce single payment amounts and begin the contracting process by June 2010.

Additional information about the Medicare DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Program is available on CMS’ Web site.

• Author
• Recent Posts

admin aapc

Latest posts by admin aapc (see all)

• Do You Have a Documentation Emergency? - April 3, 2023
• Correctly Identify Low Back Pain - March 1, 2023
• How to Optimize the RCM Process - February 1, 2023