WASHINGTON, D.C. – More than 50 AAHomecare Board & Council leaders are set to meet with approximately 140 House and Senate offices on May 15. Advocates will be discussing a range of issues, including Medicare reimbursement policy – specifically, the need to pass 75/25 relief legislation that has moved through House and Senate committees but was not included in recent spending bills.
Calls and emails to healthcare staff for your Senators and Representative over the next two weeks can be a force multiplier for those upcoming in-person meetings set for Capitol Hill.
The message is simple: Ask your Senators and Representatives to reach out to leadership in their respective chambers in support of extending the 75/25 Medicare blended rates for DME in non-rural areas through 2024 as soon as possible.
You should emphasize that cuts have already taken effect and share how they are impacting your ability to support your patients.
For Senate members, you can also note that this relief was included in S. 1294, which passed the Senate Finance Committee by a unanimous vote on Nov. 8. For House members, you can share that these provisions were part of H.R. 5555, which was approved by the Energy & Commerce Committee by voice vote on Dec. 6.
Please seek your Senators’ and Representative’s support in moving this relief forward in any appropriate legislative package as soon as possible.
Additional materials and messaging points can be found here. You can also encourage your colleagues and contacts to send a pre-drafted message through our Voter Voice system. Those messages don’t have the impact of a direct call or email to Capitol Hill, but they do help convey support on the issue.
Contact Gordon Barnes at [email protected] for contact information for House and Senate healthcare staff and any other assistance you need in developing and delivering a strong message.
Learn More – Legislative Update Webinar May 6
AAHomecare will hold a Legislative Update open to the HME community to learn more about the ask and how you can be a force multiplier for meetings on Capitol Hill. May 6 at 2:00 PM ET — register here.
May 7 Webinar – Safeguarding Access To Enteral Nutrition
Tuesday, May 7, 2:30 to 3:30 PM ET
Presented by: Pam Pacht of Nestle Health Science; Cameo Zehnder of Pediatric Home Service; Kristina McIntosh of Schraders’ Medical Supply; and Vicki Emch of Aveanna Healthcare
Enteral Nutrition has an integral role in HME. More than 400,000 people use feeding tubes in the U.S. each year, including infants, children and adults. Proper EN management by knowledgeable HME providers is critical to prevent malnourishment and negative health outcomes. Yet current market conditions create significant challenges to ensuring access.
This webinar will reference the white paper developed by EN stakeholders “Challenges in Enteral Nutrition Access & Management: Safeguarding Life-Sustaining Enteral Nutrition”, while walking through critical steps to help providers:
- Ensure access for our most vulnerable patients
- Advocate for the benefit
- Identify ongoing support and expertise
- Articulate to payers and legislators the value of services provided
Reminder: In 2024, AAHomecare is offering all education programs as a member benefit. Members are encouraged to participate in or download as many education opportunities as possible to expand your staff’s knowledge base. The cost to attend for non-members is $129.
Register here for the May 7 webinar.
UHC to Change Order Process for Medicare Advantage in Georgia and North Carolina
UnitedHealthcare (UHC) announced that they will implement a capitated arrangement with Synapse Health for DME in Georgia and North Carolina for members of their Medicare Advantage (MA) plans who are enrolled in HMO and PPO products. The new process goes into effect on August 1, 2024.
In their announcement, UHC states: If you are a DME provider, you will need to join the Synapse Health network to continue to provide standard DME for most UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage Plan members in Georgia and North Carolina.
AAHomecare is seeking additional details on the new arrangement and will work with ACMESA and GAMES to protect network access for DME suppliers serving MA patients and ensure continuity of care.
See today’s announcement from UHC for more information, including the scope of products covered.
Medicare Advantage & Part D Final Rule & AAHomecare Summary
CMS recently issued a Final Rule to strengthen protections for beneficiaries and promote competition in Medicare Advantage and Part D plans.
The Rule adds guardrails for compensation to stop anti-competitive steering by prohibiting separate payments to the agents or brokers that may interfere with a broker’s ability to objectively assess and recommend the plan that best fits a beneficiary’s health care needs. The rule also sets a single increased compensation rate for all plans to be updated annually and revises the scope of items and services included within agent and broker compensation.
Other issues covered in the Rule include the use of beneficiary data for marketing purposes, supplemental benefits for individuals with chronic health conditions, and enrollment policy for dual-eligibles. The Final Rule takes effect on June 3, 2024, with varying implementation dates for specific provisions.
- AAHomecare Rule Summary
- Federal Register notice: Medicare Program; Changes to the Medicare Advantage and the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit Program for Contract Year 2024-Remaining Provisions and Contract Year 2025,