As the home medical equipment (HME) industry continues to await the home health final rule that could include significant changes to Medicare competitive bidding and accreditation processes, the American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) is urging stakeholders to keep speaking up.
The final rule had been expected as early as Oct. 31. But in a Nov. 3 bulletin, AAHomecare said its lobbying team last week “began to hear increasing speculation that the release of the 2026 DMEPOS/home health final rule could be delayed … That speculation has now been proven accurate with the final rule still awaiting release.”
The association added it doesn’t know when the final rule will be released or whether the delay has been influenced by “all-out” advocacy efforts.
“What is clear is that all HME stakeholders have an extended opportunity to reach out to Capitol Hill and ask them to weigh in with CMS [Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services] and the administration on the CBP [competitive bidding program] and the proposed rule,” the bulletin said.
AAHomecare asked for stakeholders reach out to legislators’ health-care staffers to ask them to pause the competitive bidding program. As a sample message, AAHomecare suggested, “I am asking your office to reach out to your contacts at CMS and/or the administration to request that CMS withdraw or delay the DME [durable medical equipment] Medicare competitive bidding program provisions in the DMEPOS/home health proposed rule and re-engage with industry, patient and clinical stakeholders to develop a better framework for the program. CMS has not yet shared a final rule, and we believe that strong and timely Congressional outreach can convince the agency to pause the rule and work on an approach that protects patient access to high-quality DME products and related services.”
AAHomecare encouraged industry members to deliver that message in their own words, including their own experiences or perspectives.
A new pre-written letter is also available for stakeholders to send to legislators.
