John B. Breaux: “I rise to commend Senator Grassley for his leadership on the important issue of cutting waste, fraud and abuse in the…”

“I rise to commend Senator Grassley for his leadership on the important issue of cutting waste, fraud and abuse in the Medicare program. As chairman of the National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare, I strongly support our legislation that will save federal dollars by modernizing an outdated and confusing billing system. The Medicare Universal Product Number Act of 1999 is a practical solution which will ensure that the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) knows what it is paying for when reimbursing for durable medical equipment (DME) under the Medicare program. Currently, HCFA's billing system uses overly broad and sometimes outdated codes. These codes can cover a wide range of products which vary in price and quality, making it difficult for HCFA to track and price medical equipment accurately. By using Universal Product Numbers (UPNs), which provide a unique, unambiguous means of identifying each product on the market, HCFA will be able to track utilization more efficiently. Because UPNs are unique identifiers, HCFA will be better equipped in combating fraud against the Medicare program.”