NMEDA President Testifies On Capitol Hill

TAMPA, Fla., June 10, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association's President Sam Cook testified on Capitol Hill this month before the U.S. House of Representatives House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Health Subcommittee during a hearing on "Assessing VA's Ability to Promptly Pay Non-VA Providers."

Cook, who submitted his written statement prior to the hearing, outlined the inherent slow pay and no pay VA practices that have created issues for the NMEDA members, who are primarily small businesses across the country serving the disabled including veterans.  Cook provided documentation to the subcommittee that showed that over a five-year period the VA owed NMEDA dealers more than $34 million in past due invoices. Cook outlined the plans put in place through cooperative meetings with the VA Central Office to document and report the slow pay practices affecting the services that NMEDA members are willing or able to provide without reimbursement.  In the 14 Past Due Reports sent by NMEDA on behalf of it members to the VA Central office since 2010, no change has come to the timeliness of reimbursement, other than a request by the VA to change the reporting criteria to invoices that are more than 120 days past due, which effectively showed a reduction in all outstanding invoices, but failed to address the issue of slow pay and no pay.

The average number of days past due for NMEDA member invoices is approximately 160 days  (five months), Cook testified that there are several invoices that are more than three years past due. In fact, in the February 2015 Past Due Invoice Report submitted to the VA, one invoice was 2,368 days past due (over six years). The Past Due Reports show that the average outstanding invoice is now at an average of nine months past due, with more than 63% of the invoices more than 180 days on late pay.

Cook provided numerous case studies detailing the efforts made by NMEDA on members' behalf to work with the VA to collect, as well as inconsistencies in the application of VA policies for payment of invoices. 

Cook added that these outstanding invoices make it difficult to continue to provide veterans with the services they require from accredited Quality Assurance Program (QAP) dealers simply because of the VA payment practices, "they [NMEDA members] simply cannot afford to bankroll the VA's sluggish and inconsistent invoice processing procedures."  In turn, these practices diminish the pool of qualified suppliers to the veterans who need the services and equipment to live active and productive lives moving forward.  NMEDA represents 300-highly skilled and qualified mobility dealers who specialize in mobility solutions, including services such as Certified Driver Rehabilitation Specialists.  This led to a line of questions to Cook about VA quality of service and equipment standards for the mobility industry to which Cook explained there are no minimum quality of service or equipment standards required by the VA for mobility solutions for veterans, "Insurance is not required of vendors, 24-hour service in not required and the VA is still operating under the 2000 guidebook."  Cook added many vets have unsafe vehicles on the road provided by vendors who are not accredited, and that endangers everyone.

Cook finished his statement by adding NMEDA values its relationship with the country's veterans and wishes to continue to provide mobility solutions so that they can return to and lead safe productive lives.

About the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association:
Founded in 1989 as a non-profit trade association, the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association (NMEDA) supports more than 600 mobility equipment dealers, manufacturers and driver rehabilitation specialists in the U.S. and Canada dedicated to expanding opportunities for people with disabilities. NMEDA is the sponsor of National Mobility Awareness Month each May and the Local Heroes Contest that celebrates Life Moving Forward. For information on NMEDA, please visit www.nmeda.com, as well as Facebook and Twitter. Visit MobilityAwarenessMonth.com for the National Mobility Awareness Month.

For more information:
Donna Tinoco, APR
[email protected] 
cell: 407 341-1104 

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SOURCE National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association

Related Links

http://www.nmeda.com