On August 11, 2015, CMS announced the detailed timeline for “Round 1 2017” of the Medicare Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies (DMEPOS) Competitive Bidding Program. As previously reported, this round represents a recompete (with product category changes) of the current Round 1 Recompete contracts, which expire December 31, 2016. The following are the major anticipated dates for the Round 1 2017 competition:

8/25/2015 – Registration begins for user IDs and passwords

9/14/2015 — Authorized Officials are strongly encouraged to register by this date

10/5/2015– Backup Authorized Officials are strongly encouraged to register by this date

10/15/2015 — CMS opens bid window for Round 1 2017

10/23/2015 — Registration closes

11/16/2015 — Covered document review date for bidders to submit financial documents

12/16/2015 — Bid window closes

Winter 2016 — Preliminary bid evaluation notification

Summer 2016 — CMS announces single payment amounts, begins contracting process

Fall 2016 — CMS announces contract suppliers; begins education campaigns for contract suppliers, beneficiaries, referral agents and suppliers

January 1, 2017 — Implementation of Round 1 2017 contracts and prices

These dates are subject to change. Also note that since the initial announcement in April of the Round 1 2017 competition, CMS dropped one of the product categories – non-invasive pressure support ventilators – from the Round 1 2017 program. Potential bidders should ensure that their enrollment files at the National Supplier Clearinghouse and in the Provider Enrollment, Chain, and Ownership System (PECOS) are current in order to register and bid. Suppliers also must be accredited and hold all necessary state licenses for any products for which they will bid. For more information about the DMEPOS bidding program, see our previous posts or the Competitive Bidding Implementation Contractor (CBIC) website.