Non-contract suppliers that are renting competitively bid durable medical equipment (DME)* or oxygen and oxygen equipment at the time the DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Program is implemented may choose to become grandfathered suppliers for these items. A non-contract supplier that chooses to become a grandfathered supplier for any product category is required to grandfather all items within that product category to all Medicare beneficiaries who are renting the DME or oxygen and oxygen equipment at the time the program is implemented and who choose the grandfathering option. For the Round 1 Rebid, the program implementation date is January 1, 2011.
Notification Requirements
Non-contract suppliers must provide written notification of their decision whether to be a grandfathered supplier to all of their Medicare beneficiaries who reside in a competitive bidding area (CBA) and are currently renting competitively bid DME or oxygen and oxygen equipment. The notification must inform the beneficiaries about their decision whether to grandfather and explain the grandfathering process and the beneficiaries’ options. In addition, suppliers that choose to become grandfathered suppliers must notify CMS of their decisions. For the Round 1 Rebid, the deadline for these notifications is November 17, 2010.
Please see the fact sheets below for detailed information.
* Rented DME items include standard and complex rehabilitative wheelchairs, power operated vehicles, hospital beds, continuous positive airway pressure devices (CPAPs), respiratory assistive devices (RADs), support surfaces and walkers. Items in the enteral nutrients, equipment and supplies product category and the mail-order diabetic supply product category cannot be grandfathered.
The Round 1 Rebid contracts for mail-order diabetic supplies ended on December 31, 2012, so information about the Round 1 Rebid mail-order diabetic supplies product category no longer applies.