CMS has just released the single payment amounts for the Round 2 Recompete of the Medicare DMEPOS competitive bidding program and the national mail-order competition for diabetes supplies.  In today’s announcement, CMS stated it will be offering 12,181 contracts to 637 Round 2 Recompete bidders, along with 9 contracts for the national mail-order program for contracts that take effect on July 1, 2016.  The “winning” supplier names have not yet been made public; CMS anticipates announcing the contract suppliers in the spring.

CMS did not release data comparing the single payment amounts to current fee schedule payments, but the agency notes that during the first two years of Round 2 and the national mail-order programs (July 1, 2013-June 30 2015), Medicare saved approximately $3.6 billion as a result of the contract rates.  These savings are likely to continue to grow as a result of the recompete.

As previously reported, the Round 2 Recompete will cover 90 metropolitan statistical areas/117 competitive bidding areas, while the national mail-order recompete for mail-order diabetic testing supplies includes all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa.  This round includes the following categories of items and services:

  • Enteral Nutrients, Equipment and Supplies
  • General Home Equipment and Related Supplies and Accessories (hospital beds and related accessories, group 1 and 2 support surfaces, commode chairs, patient lifts, and seat lifts)
  • Nebulizers and Related Supplies
  • Negative Pressure Wound Therapy Pumps and Related Supplies and Accessories
  • Respiratory Equipment and Related Supplies and Accessories (includes oxygen, oxygen equipment, and supplies; continuous positive airway pressure devices and respiratory assist devices and related supplies and accessories)
  • Standard Mobility Equipment and Related Accessories (includes walkers, standard power and manual wheelchairs, scooters, and related accessories)
  • Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation Devices and Supplies

The Competitive Bidding Implementation Contractor has a variety of related educational materials for suppliers on its website.