To improve the efficiency of the Medicare Program, the Balanced Budget Act (BBA) of 1997 authorized HCFA to test competitive bidding as a way for Medicare to price and pay for some categories of items and services. Medicare implemented the first Competitive Bidding Demonstration for durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies (DMEPOS) in Polk County, Florida. Suppliers were selected through a competitive bidding process in the Spring of 1999 in five product categories: oxygen equipment and supplies, hospital beds and accessories, enteral nutrition products and supplies, urological supplies, and surgical dressings. Payments under this demonstration began on October 1, 1999, and demonstration prices remained in effect through September 30, 2001.
Medicare implemented a second DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Demonstration in the San Antonio, Texas area (Bexar, Comal, and Guadalupe counties) on February 1, 2001. Suppliers were selected through a competitive bidding process to provide the following product categories: oxygen equipment and supplies, hospital beds and accessories, manual wheelchairs and accessories, general orthotic devices, and nebulizer inhalation drugs. The demonstration prices in the San Antonio, Texas area will remain in effect until December 31, 2002.
Another round of competitive bidding was implemented in Polk County in October 2001. Suppliers were selected through a competitive bidding process to provide the following product categories: oxygen equipment and supplies, hospital beds and accessories, urological supplies, and surgical dressings. Demonstration prices will remain in effect through September 30, 2002.
Several studies show that the Medicare program and Medicare beneficiaries have been paying too much for some medical equipment and supplies. Approximately $6 billion is spent nationally each year on equipment and supplies under the Medicare program. Competitive bidding uses the dynamics of the marketplace to provide incentives for suppliers to provide items and services in an efficient manner. These changes should also help reduce Medicare fraud and abuse by screening out suppliers who do not operate with ethical business practices. This web site includes various documents describing the demonstrations in both Polk County and San Antonio. The web site will be updated periodically as new information becomes available.
General Competitive Bidding Information
Reports to Congress Regarding Competitive Bidding Demonstration for
DMEPOS
San Antonio, Texas Demonstration
Fact Sheets and Press Releases
Background Materials
Bidding Results
Polk County, Florida Demonstration - Round II
Bidding Materials
Fact Sheets and Press Releases
Bidding Results (Effective October 1, 2001 through September 30, 2002)
Polk County, Florida Demonstration - Round I
Fact Sheets and Press Releases
Background Materials
Bidding Results