If your business provides medical equipment or supplies that patients use at home, Medicare treats you differently from a clinic or a physician. You are a DMEPOS supplier, and you enroll on your own application: the CMS-855S. It is one of the most demanding Medicare enrollments, because CMS pairs it with accreditation, a surety bond, a detailed set of supplier standards and an on-site inspection.
This guide explains what the 855S is, who needs it, what has to be in place before you apply, and what keeps an enrollment in good standing afterward. It stays at a high level on purpose. The goal is to help you understand the scope of the work and plan for it, not to walk through the form.
What DMEPOS means
DMEPOS stands for durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics and supplies. It covers a wide range of items, for example:
- Durable equipment such as hospital beds, wheelchairs, walkers, oxygen equipment and CPAP devices
- Prosthetic limbs and certain other prosthetic devices
- Orthotics such as braces
- Supplies such as diabetic testing supplies, ostomy supplies and certain wound care supplies
Medicare pays for these items under Part B when they are medically necessary, ordered by an enrolled practitioner and furnished by an enrolled supplier that meets CMS's standards.
What the CMS-855S is
The CMS-855S is the Medicare enrollment application for DMEPOS suppliers. It establishes the supplier's billing privileges, identifies its owners and managing employees, lists its locations and the products and services it furnishes, and documents its accreditation and surety bond.
Unlike most Medicare enrollments, which go to a regional Medicare Administrative Contractor, DMEPOS enrollment is handled by two dedicated National Provider Enrollment (NPE) contractors. CMS assigns them by state. Texas suppliers fall under the NPE West contractor, and suppliers in eastern states fall under NPE East. Applications can be submitted on paper or online through PECOS.
Who needs to file the 855S
Any business, or any location of a business, that wants to bill Medicare for DMEPOS items needs an 855S enrollment. That often includes:
- Home medical equipment and respiratory companies
- Retail and independent pharmacies that bill Medicare for diabetic supplies or other DMEPOS items
- Orthotic and prosthetic practices
- Physician practices, podiatry, optometry or physical therapy clinics that dispense certain DMEPOS items to their own patients and bill for them separately
- Medical supply companies
Two points catch many organizations off guard. First, enrollment is by location. Each physical location that furnishes DMEPOS generally needs its own enrollment. Second, a clinic that already has a 855B enrollment for its professional services does not automatically have DMEPOS billing privileges. If it dispenses and bills for supplies, it needs a separate 855S enrollment for that activity. Our 855A vs 855B vs 855I guide covers the other forms.
What has to be in place before you apply
CMS expects several pieces to exist before an 855S is submitted. At a high level:
- An NPI for the supplier organization, with NPPES details that match the legal entity and location.
- Accreditation from a CMS-approved accrediting organization, unless the supplier falls into an exempt category such as certain licensed professionals furnishing items within their scope. Accreditation is its own project, with its own survey, and it must cover the products the supplier intends to bill.
- A surety bond. Most DMEPOS suppliers must submit a continuous surety bond of at least $50,000 per enrolled location with the application. CMS can require a higher amount based on certain adverse history.
- The application fee. DMEPOS suppliers are institutional suppliers for fee purposes, so they pay the Medicare application fee, which is $750 for CY2026, at initial enrollment, when adding a location and at revalidation. (Individual practitioners, physician and practitioner groups, and reassignments of benefits (formerly the 855R) are exempt, but DMEPOS suppliers are not.)
- State licensure where required. Some products and services, such as oxygen or pharmacy items, need specific state licenses, and CMS expects them to be in place.
- A compliant physical location that meets the supplier standards described below.
The DMEPOS supplier standards
CMS publishes a set of supplier standards in its regulations, and every enrolled DMEPOS supplier must meet them on day one and keep meeting them. Without listing them all, they address areas such as:
- Maintaining a physical location that is accessible to the public and staffed during posted hours
- Keeping required licenses, insurance and the surety bond current
- Honoring warranties, delivering items and instructing patients on how to use them
- Handling complaints and keeping records of them
- Not contracting out certain core functions and not soliciting patients in prohibited ways
- Reporting changes to the enrollment within the timeframe CMS sets
Failing to meet a standard is grounds for denial or revocation, so it is worth reading the official list (42 CFR 424.57) before you open the doors, not after.
Screening and the site visit
CMS screens newly enrolling DMEPOS suppliers at its high risk level. In practice this means an unannounced site inspection to verify that the location exists, is open and staffed during posted hours, and meets the supplier standards. High-risk screening can also require fingerprint-based background checks for owners with a significant ownership interest.
CMS has also used temporary enrollment moratoria for certain DMEPOS supplier types when it sees elevated fraud risk. A nationwide moratorium on new medical supply company enrollments took effect in February 2026 and has since expired, but it is a reminder to check CMS's current moratoria page before planning a new location.
Ownership changes and the 36-month rule
Ownership matters a great deal in DMEPOS enrollment. Under recent CMS rulemaking, a change in majority ownership within 36 months of a DMEPOS supplier's initial enrollment, or of its last majority ownership change, can end the existing enrollment unless an exception applies. The supplier then has to enroll again as a new supplier, with new accreditation. If you are buying or selling a DMEPOS business, factor this in early.
Keeping the enrollment active
DMEPOS suppliers revalidate on a shorter cycle than most providers. CMS generally requires revalidation every three years, along with ongoing reaccreditation and a continuously maintained surety bond. Changes to locations, ownership, managing employees or products must be reported promptly. A lapsed bond or accreditation can lead to revocation, so the calendar matters as much as the original application. Our revalidation guide covers the broader cycle.
Where DMEPOS enrollments usually run into trouble
- The location is not ready for inspection, or posted hours do not match when someone is actually there.
- Accreditation does not cover every product category the supplier plans to bill.
- The surety bond names the wrong entity or location, or does not match the application.
- Ownership and managing employee details differ between the application, state records and the accreditation file.
- A practice assumes its existing 855B enrollment covers supplies it dispenses.
Each of these is avoidable with planning. For a broader look at what stalls Medicare applications, see common reasons Medicare applications are rejected.
How Maverick can help with DMEPOS supplier enrollment
The 855S has more moving parts than almost any other Medicare enrollment, and those parts belong to different organizations: the accreditor, the surety, the state and the NPE contractor. Here is why suppliers and dispensing practices bring this work to us:
- One coordinated file. We check that your NPI, licenses, accreditation, surety bond and ownership details all agree with each other before the 855S goes in, so the application is complete and accurate.
- Prompt submission. As soon as your file is complete and the fee is paid, we submit. We do not let it sit.
- Regular follow-up. We follow up with the NPE contractor on a set schedule and answer requests for more information on your behalf.
- Keeping you updated. You hear from us on status, on anything we need, and on what to have ready for the site visit.
- Staying enrolled. Our Autopilot package tracks revalidation, change reporting and the dates for your bond and accreditation so they do not lapse quietly.
Practices that dispense supplies alongside professional services can pair this with Maverick Launch: Group for their 855B and clinician enrollments. What we do not control is the accreditor's schedule, the site visit, or how long the NPE contractor takes to decide. We will not promise dates that belong to someone else.
Learn more on our Medicare and Medicaid enrollment service page.
Sources: CMS-855S Medicare Enrollment Application, DMEPOS Suppliers (CMS.gov); DMEPOS Supplier Standards, 42 CFR 424.57, and surety bond requirements, 42 CFR 424.57(d) (CMS.gov); CMS Medicare Enrollment Application Fee page (CY2026 fee); 42 CFR 424.518 (screening levels); CMS DMEPOS Competitive Bidding notice on moratorium expiration (August 2026); CMS DME Nationwide Moratorium Q&As; Medicare Program Integrity Manual, Chapter 10. Verified October 2026.