Summary of CMS’ Special ODF on Bidding Rules
Dear PMC Members:
Late last week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) held the second in a series of competitive bidding “bidder conferences” on the topic “Rules for Submitting a Bid.” CMS reminded DME providers that they should start registering key personnel that will be entering bid information on the Dbids software. The deadline for registering Authorized Operators (AOs) is September 14th and providers have until October 10th to register Backup Authorized Operators (BAOs). The online registration site will close on November 4th at 9pm (EST). No registrations or changes to registrations will be allowed after that date.
Product categories and competitive bidding areas can be found at www.cms.hhs.gov/dmeposcompetitivebid. To bid, providers must have an active National Supplier Clearinghouse number and be accredited by September 30th and bonded by October 2nd. In addition, providers must have all applicable state licenses for certain product categories.
All contractors who purchase inventory, repair rented equipment or delivery and instruct on use of the item must comply with supplier standards. Providers, moreover, must notify CMS of subcontracting arrangements within 10 days of being awarded a Medicare contract.
Providers are prohibited from subcontracting for:
- intake and assessment
- coordination of care with physician
- submission of claims on behalf of beneficiary
- ownership and responsibility for equipment furnished to the beneficiary; and
- ensuring product safety.
Additionally, subcontractors cannot sell referrals and cannot be currently excluded from Medicare, state health programs or any federal procurement program.
When questioned about the ability of accreditation agencies to survey subcontractors prior to competitive bidding, CMS hinted that there maybe some changes to the accreditation deadline for subcontractors and urged providers to keep posted on this issue.
When submitting bids, providers should submit a bid amounts for all items in a product category. Bid amounts cannot exceed the fee schedule in the bidding area and must be “bona fide.”
For questions on the competitive bidding program or bidding process, providers should contact: The Competitive Bidding Implementation Contractor Service Center (CBIC) tollfree at 877-577-5331 or at www.dmecompetitivebid.com or CMS at www.cms.hhs.gov/dmeposcompetitivebid.
