Medicare delays payment cuts for medical equipment suppliers through 2025

What it does

This bill delays Medicare payment reductions for durable medical equipment (wheelchairs, oxygen, walkers, etc.) in most U.S. areas through the end of 2025, and postpones a separate payment rule nationwide until 2026. It directs the HHS Secretary to apply a temporary transition rule that keeps payment rates higher than they would otherwise be under competitive bidding rules.

Why we flagged it

The bill's operative mechanism is a delay in Medicare payment reductions for durable medical equipment suppliers. It is narrowly tailored to preserve higher reimbursement rates for a specific industry segment during a defined transition period.

What the text implies

• Delays are temporary (end-2025 and start-2026), suggesting the bill may require renewal or face automatic reversion to lower payment schedules, creating recurring legislative pressure from the DME industry.
• The bill references specific CFR sections (414.210(g)(9)(v) and (vi)) without restating them; the actual payment impact depends on what those regulations contain, which is not visible in this text.
• By delaying the lower-payment rule nationwide, the bill may preserve higher Medicare spending on DME relative to the baseline, potentially affecting appropriations or deficit projections.
• Suppliers in rural and noncontiguous areas receive different treatment (transition rule applies through 2025 only in non-rural areas), creating a geographic disparity in payment timing.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

Beneficiaries may face lower out-of-pocket costs if suppliers pass savings through, and continued access to suppliers is preserved if higher rates keep them in business. However, the bill delays cost controls that would reduce Medicare spending, shifting costs to taxpayers and potentially crowding out other health spending; the primary beneficiary is the DME supplier industry, not patients directly.

Who stands to gain

• durable medical equipment suppliers and manufacturers
• DME rental and sales companies
• medical equipment distributors

Named in the bill

HHS Secretary, Medicare program, DMEPOS (Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies), 42 CFR 414.210(g)(9)(v), 42 CFR 414.210(g)(9)(vi), competitive bidding program

Where it stands

25 cosponsors: 18 Republicans, 7 Democrats.

• Mar 10, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Mar 10, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Ways and Means and House Committee on Energy and Commerce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a…”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

11 lobbying clients named this bill on 17 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $2,490,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 6 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 92% of bills with at least one filing.

Mariannette Miller-Meeks, the sponsor, reported $2,407,952 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• American Association for Homecare — $800,000 on 2 filings
• Accendra Health Inc. — $740,000 on 3 filings
• Medline — $400,000 on 1 filing
• American Association for Homecare (aahomecare) — $140,000 on 2 filings
• American Association for Homecare (aahomecare) — $120,000 on 2 filings

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 22, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.