Stakeholders make case to CMS Administrator Oz on bid program, moratorium

WASHINGTON – Industry stakeholders left a recent meeting with Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz buoyed by his “willingness” to work with the home medical equipment (HME) industry on a host of concerns.

The 35-minute meeting, which also included Deputy Administrator Kim Brandt, was the first between AAHomecare leadership and Oz.

“We’ve been working hard to engage CMS and the Administration ever since the proposed rule came out,” said Tom Ryan, president and CEO. “Securing a meeting with not only Dr. Oz, but also Kim Brandt, who we have a relationship with, gave us a great opportunity to advocate for fixing the bidding program and making sure that CMS understands our industry is committed to preventing waste, fraud, and abuse.”

During his tenure in office, Oz has made rooting out what he sees as fraud, waste and abuse as a priority through a host of initiatives, including:

• A new remote-item delivery model for the next round of the competitive bidding program (CBP); and
• A six-month nationwide moratorium on new Medicare enrollments for DMEPOS suppliers.

Stakeholders shared with Oz that the moratorium could prevent reputable providers already in business from growing. They would like to see a waiver for providers that have been in business for at least 36 months.

“(Dr. Oz’s) point was that was never the intent (of the moratorium),” said Ryan. “We’re waiting for clarification on that, and we reinforced that in our email response to Kim Brandt.”

Oz’s main concern appears to be criminal foreign entities working to defraud the U.S. government.

“He said, ‘We’re open to working with the industry,’” said Jay Witter, senior vice president of public policy for AAHomecare. “He did say he understands how valuable DME is to beneficiaries and he was well briefed on our issues.”

Oz said he understands the CBP is a big concern. Here again he indicated a willingness to work with the industry on improvements.

“He said he’d had a call from the White House about the moratorium and the competitive bidding program,” said Witter. “I’ve already communicated to the Hill that CMS is open to change. We’ll continue to work with the Administration and Congress until competitive bidding is fixed.”

The meeting tees up the AAHomecare Washington Legislative Conference May 13-14. The association says it has more than 100 advocates from 29 states planning to participate.

The industry has four active pieces of legislation in play:

• H.R. 2005, DMEPOS Relief Act of 2025;
• H.R. 1703, Choices for Increased Mobility Act of 2025;
• H.R. 2902, Supplemental Oxygen Access Reform (SOAR) Act of 2025; and
• Diabetes Interventions Addressing Barriers to Enrollment, Technology, and Education Services Act (DIABETES Act), S. 4037, which would delay competitive bidding for continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) and insulin pumps for five years.

Stakeholders are also working to secure legislation for a bid delay for ostomy and urological supplies.

“These changes were not vetted – we were not consulted, consumer groups were not consulted,” said Witter. “We’re seeking a technical advisory panel and a demonstration project. These are not unreasonable asks.”