Tag: Legislative update

WASHINGTON – Industry stakeholders say Congress is “definitely getting back to work,” after a long spring, during which there was little movement on HME issues.  Stakeholders have been meeting with industry champion Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., to discuss legislative language for competitive bidding relief, line up a co-sponsor and identify possible vehicles for the fall, they said.  “We’ve had Hill visits, face-to-face meetings with members...

WATERLOO, Iowa - With only two weeks left until a July 9 deadline, a paltry 56 comments have been submitted in response to a competitive bidding-related interim final rule. “And we wonder why (nothing changes),” John Gallagher, vice president of government relations for VGM, told attendees at last week's Heartland Conference. “CMS refers to comments all the time. Take the time when you get back to your office to do the comments.” The IFR, published in the May 11...

WASHINGTON - Rep. Renee Ellmers, R-N.C., has introduced a bill that would halt CMS's plans to make dramatic changes to coverage for prosthetic devices. H.R. 5045, the “Preserving Access to Modern Prosthetic Limbs Act of 2016,” would “impose a moratorium on the implementation of a proposed Medicare local coverage determination on lower limb prostheses,” according to a bulletin from the American Orthotics and Prosthetics Association. The bill would restrict CMS from...