Impending cuts to Medicare's home oxygen benefit will hit Florida harder than any other state, shows a data analysis. 

A study by Avalere Health LLC found about 19,700 Florida residents would be impacted by the change. Texas is the next hardest-hit state, with 17,400 residents affected, the study found. 

The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 and the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 are responsible for the pending reductions in the reimbursement rate for the home oxygen benefit, said the Council for Quality Respiratory Care, a Washington, D.C.-based group of home oxygen therapy providers and manufacturers. 

The cuts would total $710 million in 2009 and $855 million in 2010, the group said, citing an 18.8 percent reduction in the reimbursement rate. 

The Medicare Modernization Act requires Medicare to put in place competitive bidding for some types of durable medical equipment, including oxygen equipment. 

The Deficit Reduction Act imposes a 36-month cap on the monthly payments Medicare makes to home oxygen providers for equipment rental services. 
About one in five Medicare beneficiaries use home oxygen for more than 36 months and it is not clear how those beneficiaries' services may be funded after the cap period, the council said. 

The changes would affect a significant portion of the more than 1 million Medicare beneficiaries with chronic lung disease who rely on home oxygen for health and independence, the group added, noting patients who use home oxygen therapy are less likely to go to the hospital. 

Home oxygen therapy currently costs the Medicare program $7.62 a day, the council said. The group said a day in the hospital costs as much as $4,600 a day. 

After full implementation of the competitive bidding process and the 36-month cap, the group predicted the daily reimbursement for home oxygen therapy to fall to between $4.50 and $5.50.