Congressman Ted Deutch has cosponsored H.R. 1041, the Fairness in Medicare Bidding. Created in the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003, the goal of the program was to improve quality of service and eliminate excess costs within Medicare. While everyone supports competition and savings, the program is anything but competitive. Shortly after the program was first implemented, Congress legislatively delayed it for 18 months due to critical flaws in the bidding process, which produced fewer competitors, fewer homecare services, and substantial decrease in the quality of care for seniors and those with disabilities. Since the delay, no significant improvements have been made to the program or the bidding process. In January 2011, Medicare re-launched the program for a first round of bidding in nine areas, including Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Charlotte, Dallas-Fort Worth, Kansas City, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando and Riverside (CA).  The second round will add an additional 90 cities, and the program is expected to go nationwide by 2016. The Fairness in Medicare Bidding Act will repeal this harmful program in a budget neutral manner, while also ensuring that seniors and individuals with disabilities can continue to receive the same quality of care within the home setting. Allowing the program to continue will only continue to force smaller providers from the market and further decrease the quality of care nationwide, leading to additional hospitalizations and costs on the backend.

You can read H.R. 1041, the Fairness in Medicare Bidding, here.