Medical Equipment Suppliers Threaten to Cut Off Medicaid Patients Unless Maine Raises Reimbursement Rates

Members of the New England Medical Equipment Dealers Association have threatened to terminate services for Medicaid beneficiaries if Maine officials do not increase reimbursement rates for home medical equipment such as wheelchairs and oxygen suppliers, AP/Foster's Daily Democrat reports. Saying that the state's current Medicaid reimbursement formula fails to account for the "high costs of maintenance and set-up," association members, who supply "the bulk" of durable medical equipment in Maine, support legislation (LD 1151) that would boost their Medicaid reimbursements. "We're losing our shirts," James Greatorex, president of durable medical device supplier Black Bear Medical, said, adding, "This state's reimbursement rates are, as far as we can tell, the lowest in the country." According to the AP/Daily Democrat, the state Department of Human Services "does not oppose" changes to the reimbursement formula, provided the state Legislature funds the rate increase. However, the measure, which won support in the state Legislature's Health and Human Services Committee, would cost more than $400,000 over two years and will likely face opposition in the state Legislature's Appropriations Committee, according to the AP/Daily Democrat. The state currently spends $2.6 million of its $400 million Medicaid budget on durable medical equipment (AP/Foster's Daily Democrat, 6/14).