Difference Between Supplier Cost and Medicare Reimbursement Points to Problem

Heavy Price:  Medicare Overpaying for Back Brace.  by Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar.  Associated Press.  December 19, 2012.

Medicare paid $919 for back braces which costs suppliers an average of $191 each.  This is according to a report released by the inspector general of the Department of Health and Human Services.  Such discrepancies may lead to more competitive bidding for medical equipment as a result of negotiations for the so-called "fiscal cliff."