Current medicare reimbursement rates are forcing homecare medical equipment companies to close shop and leaving fewer options available for paitents.
The rates allow these companies to receive low reimbursement rates for equipment like oxygen tanks, walkers, wheelchairs, sleep apnea machines, and more; the low rates have been in effect since 2013.
According to the American Association for Homecare, 27% of New York firms have shut down since then.
The stories are very touching that, they're going in owners are using their 401K to pay for salaries, they're having to cut staff, they're having to cut certain lines of equipment, they're reducing their service radius," said Jay Witter, Senior VP of Public Policy at AA Homecare. "So we're seeing these healthcare deserts and particularly in upstate New York, there's a lot of rural areas and it's expensive to deliver equipment when people need it.
Clifton Park-based Hometown Health Care gave us some insight into the challenges.
"The strain or the challenge lies with the doctors that are trying to find qualified providers and be able to get service. It's timely that they know it's going to be a good quality provider that's taking care of their patients between when they see them," said Casey Toomajian, Hometown Healthcare CEO. "So I think when you lose that many people and you lose options, it almost becomes where there's not as much competition, which can erode quality, I think."
However, bipartisan legislation in Congress would help change these rates, helping businesses stay afloat and paitents the care they desire.
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"So our members provide the equipment to Medicare beneficiaries and then are reimbursed by CMS. That reimbursement rate has been drastically cut over the years, from over 60 to 70%. This legislation just kind of gets us back a little bit," said Witter.
Toomajian adds home health equipment companies are one of the few providers that go into patient homes and finding quality care and equipment is critical in a patient's ability to recover or live comfortably
"We're a fundamental critical health care provider to allow a patient to stay in the home as opposed to being in a skilled nursing facility, whether it's a hospital or a long-term care facility," said Toomajian. "And so, you know, everybody agrees that home care is the best, that's what the patients want.
The legislation has been introduced in the House and Senate, policy experts say similar bills have been passed in the past.
The bill would need to be passed by the end of the year or be re-introduced in the next congressional session.