H.R. 10787: Access to Medical Supplies Act

This bill would change how Medicare handles urological supplies and ostomy supplies for a limited period and would add new review and access protections.

What it would do

• Temporarily exempt these supplies from Medicare’s competitive bidding system. The bill would bar urological and ostomy supplies from Medicare competitive acquisition programs for 5 years, for supplies furnished between January 1, 2028, and January 1, 2033.
• Create an expert panel to study the issue. Within 90 days of enactment, the Secretary of Health and Human Services would have to set up a technical expert panel to review how including these supplies in competitive acquisition programs affects patients and to recommend changes.
• Require the panel to consider access and product choice. The panel would review stakeholder input and clinical literature and make recommendations aimed at:
  • ensuring patients’ needs are met through broad availability of specialized products,
  • making sure bidding levels allow beneficiaries to get the same range of products their doctors ordered before the program started, and
  • addressing other relevant issues.
• Specify who must be on the panel. The panel must have at least 15 members, including patients and caregivers, clinicians and researchers, reimbursement experts, suppliers, and manufacturers.
• Require public transparency. CMS would have to post the panel’s meeting minutes and related documents on its website.
• Launch a demonstration project. No later than 3 years after enactment, HHS would have to run a 12-month demonstration project in no more than 3 states to test including these supplies in the competitive bidding program and measure effects on:
  • access to supplies,
  • health outcomes, and
  • whether patients can keep getting the same or clinically comparable products, including brand-name products they used before.
• Survey patients before and during the demo. Before the demonstration starts, HHS would survey a representative group of affected Medicare beneficiaries about what products they use. Three months after the demo starts, HHS would survey them again to see whether they can still get the same supplies. If access problems are found, HHS would consult the expert panel for recommended fixes.
• Limit switching pressure by suppliers. Contract suppliers would be prohibited from trying to push or persuade individuals to switch brands, or from offering alternative-brand information unless the individual asks for it.
• Preserve a fallback option. The bill would require HHS to create a process so that, if a beneficiary cannot get the same or clinically comparable supplies through the program, the beneficiary can obtain them from another supplier, including a non-contract supplier.

Practical effect

In plain terms, the bill would pause Medicare’s use of competitive bidding for these two categories of medical supplies, study how such bidding affects patients, and set up rules meant to protect access to the specific products patients already use. It also creates a short pilot test in a few states before any broader long-term decision is made.

Relevant Companies

• CW — Colgate-Palmolive Company, which sells some consumer and personal care products but is not likely to be directly affected in a significant way by this bill.
• MCK — McKesson Corporation, a large medical supply and distribution company that could be affected if Medicare purchasing rules for these supplies change.
• CAH — Cardinal Health, Inc., which distributes medical supplies and could be affected by changes in Medicare procurement and supplier rules.
• PDEX — Pro-Dex, Inc., a medical device company; if it or similar suppliers participate in related product channels, Medicare access rules could affect demand or distribution patterns.
• BDX — Becton, Dickinson and Company, which makes medical devices and could be indirectly affected if competitive bidding changes purchasing patterns for related supplies.
• ABT — Abbott Laboratories, which has medical products businesses that could be indirectly affected by Medicare supply procurement changes in adjacent markets.