Changes Coming Jan 1 to DMEPOS Program: What Medicare-Enrolled Providers, Physicians, Treating Practitioners, Discharge Planners, Social Workers, and Pharmacists Need to Know
Medicare is phasing in a new program that changes the amount Medicare pays for certain durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies (DMEPOS) and requires Medicare contract suppliers to furnish these items in most cases. Health care providers play a key role in helping their patients understand how they will be affected by this change and what they need to do in order to continue to have Medicare pay for the high-quality equipment and supplies they need. Starting January 1, 2011, if your patients with Original Medicare live in or visit one of the communities listed below, and must obtain any of the equipment or supplies included in the program (also listed below), they will almost always have to use Medicare contract suppliers for Medicare to help pay for the item. The first nine areas included in the new program are: 1. Charlotte - Gastonia-Concord, NC - SC 2. Cincinnati - Middletown, Ohio - Kentucky - Indiana 3. Cleveland - Elyria - Mentor, Ohio 4. Dallas - Fort Worth - Arlington, Texas 5. Kansas City, Missouri - Kansas 6. Miami - Fort Lauderdale - Pompano Beach, Florida 7. Orlando - Kissimmee, Florida 8. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 9. Riverside - San Bernardino - Ontario, California The products and equipment included in the program are: 1. Oxygen, oxygen equipment, and supplies 2. Standard power wheelchairs, scooters, and related accessories 3. Complex rehabilitative power wheelchairs and related accessories (Group 2 only) 4. Mail-order diabetic supplies 5. Enteral nutrients, equipment, and supplies 6. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) devices and respiratory assist devices (RADs) and related supplies and accessories 7. Hospital beds and related accessories 8. Walkers and related accessories 9. Support surfaces (Group 2 mattresses and overlays in Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach only) If your patients currently rent oxygen and oxygen equipment or durable medical equipment, they may be able to continue renting these items from their current supplier when the program takes effect, if the supplier decides to participate in the program as a "grandfathered" supplier. Medicare has a variety of resources available to help you understand the new program at www.cms.gov/DMEPOSCompetitiveBid<http://www.cms.gov/DMEPOSCompetitiveBid>; DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Program Medicare Learning Network(r) (MLN) Fact Sheets can be found at www.cms.gov/MLNProducts/downloads/DMEPOS_Competitive_Bidding_Factsheets.pdf<http://www.cms.gov/MLNProducts/downloads/DMEPOS_Competitive_Bidding_Factsheets.pdf>. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- November Flu Shot Reminder Each Office Visit is an Opportunity. Medicare patients give many reasons for not getting their annual flu vaccination, but the fact is that there are 36,000 flu-related deaths in the United States each year, on average. More than 90% of these deaths occur in people 65 years of age and older. Please talk with your Medicare patients about the importance of getting their annual flu vaccination. This Medicare-covered preventive service will protect them for the entire flu season. And remember, vaccination is important for health care workers too, who may spread the flu to high risk patients. Don't forget to immunize yourself and your staff. Protect your patients. Protect your family. Protect yourself. Get Your Flu Vaccine - Not the Flu. Remember - Influenza vaccine plus its administration are covered Part B benefits. Note that influenza vaccine is NOT a Part D covered drug. For information about Medicare's coverage of the influenza vaccine and its administration, as well as related educational resources for health care professionals and their staff, please visit the following CMS websites http://www.cms.gov/MLNProducts/Downloads/Flu_Products.pdf and http://www.cms.gov/AdultImmunizations. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Note: If you have problems accessing any hyperlink in this message, please copy and paste the URL into your Internet browser. Please DO NOT respond to this email. This email is a service of CMS and routed through an electronic mail server to communicate Medicare policy and operational changes and/or updates. Responses to this email are not routed to CMS personnel. Inquiries may be sent by going to (http://www.cms.gov/ContactCMS). Thank you. If you know someone who would like to subscribe to a Medicare Fee-For-Service (FFS) provider listserv, go to (http://www.cms.gov/prospmedicarefeesvcpmtgen/downloads/Provider_Listservs.pdf). If you would like to unsubscribe from a specific provider listserv, please go to (https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?INDEX) to unsubscribe or to leave the appropriate listserv.
