Washington Alert, June 12, 2009
American Association for Homecare
ALERT: Nearly 50 Members of Congress have Signed on to Oxygen Reform Letter: Take Advantage of Extended Monday Deadline for Sign-On
So far, approximately 50 Representatives in the House have agreed to sign on to the oxygen reform letter penned by Reps. Mike Ross (D-Ark.) and Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.). (See the full list below to check for your House Representative.)
Please urge your Representative to sign on to this letter by Monday at the latest, since Rep. Ross has extended the deadline until Monday June 15. You can send them the Ross letter, which is on the front page of the AAHomecare website, www.aahomecare.org. The letter explains what Congress needs to know: the oxygen reform plan will help to protect oxygen patients, offer cost transparency, be budget-neutral, and help reduce Medicare fraud.
HME providers should remember that the oxygen reform proposal:
- Achieves the goal of the HOPP Act, which is repeal of the 36-month cap, so oxygen can be provided as long as medical need continues.
- Is budget-neutral, which means that total Medicare dollars for oxygen therapy remain constant. (The HOPP Act would likely require oxygen providers to take a cut in reimbursement in order to pay for repeal of the cap.)
- Pulls oxygen therapy out of competitive bidding (which the AAHomecare is trying to end for all HME categories).
- Requires in the law recognition of the essential services that are part of home oxygen therapy, which will end the exclusive focus on equipment costs at the OIG and the myth of equating Medicare home oxygen therapy costs to the cost of an Internet purchase of oxygen equipment.
- In terms of oxygen reform plans, this plan has been in the works for a long time and has broad consensus across the HME sector. It is the only reform plan that has a realistic chance of prevailing.
The Ross-Meek letter also urges the House leadership to prevent any further reimbursement cuts to the home oxygen benefit in Medicare. Those threats to oxygen are explicit and are currently on the table in Congress.
That deadline is driven by Congressman Ross, who wants to make sure that the oxygen message is delivered before the health reform legislation is finalized. This process is moving very quickly.
A bill to reform oxygen is being drafted and Rep. Ross is expected to introduce that bill any day now. However the Ross-Meek letter serves as a critical place-holder on this issue.
For further information about the reform plan or getting your message to Congress, please contact Stacey Harms in AAHomecare's government relations department at staceyh@aahomecare.org.
A partial list of House members who have agreed to sign the Ross-Meek letter is below:
Arkansas
Rep. Marion Berry (D)
Rep. Mike Ross (D)
Colorado
Rep. John Salazar (D)
Florida
Rep. Allen Boyd (D)
Rep. Ron Klein (D)
Rep. Kendrick Meek (D)
Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D)
Rep. Robert Wexler (D)
Georgia
Rep. Sanford Bishop (D)
Indiana
Rep. Brad Ellsworth (D)
Rep. Peter Visclosky (D)
Maine
Rep. Michael Michaud (D)
Maryland
Rep. Donna Edwards (D)
Michigan
Rep. Candice Miller (R)
Minnesota
Rep. James Oberstar (D)
Rep. Collin Peterson (D)
New York
Rep. Gary Ackerman (D)
Rep. Michael Arcuri (D)
Rep. Nita Lowey (D)
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D)
Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D)
Rep. Gregory Meeks (D)
Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D)
North Carolina
Rep. Brad Miller (D)
Ohio
Rep. John Boccieri (D)
Rep. Steve Driehaus (D)
Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D)
Rep. Stephen LaTourette (R)
Rep. Tim Ryan (D)
Rep. Jean Schmidt (R)
Rep. Zack Space (D)
Rep. Charlie Wilson (D)
Oklahoma
Rep. Dan Boren (D)
Oregon
Rep. Kurt Schrader (D)
Pennsylvania
Rep. Jason Altmire (D)
Rep. Chris Carney (D)
Rep. Tim Holden (D)
Rep. Todd Platts (R)
Rep. Glenn Thompson (R)
South Carolina
Rep. Joe Wilson (R)
Texas
Rep. Chet Edwards (D)
Rep. Ralph Hall (R)
Washington
Rep. Jay Inslee (D)
West Virginia
Rep. Nick Rahall (D)
Wisconsin
Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D)
Rep. Steve Kagen (D)
Calendar Updates
AAHomecare Mobility Conference, University of Pittsburgh, June 18
Changes in Medicare policy for power and manual mobility, seating and positioning, and repair services have catapulted providers into a state of confusion and at times, into financial loss. Participate in this presentation to better understand mobility, seating, and service policies and ways to maintain compliance while providing optimum qualifying products to beneficiaries. In the challenging healthcare environment before us, this program is imperative for all providers who continue to provide mobility, positioning, and repair services as well as for clinicians who evaluate and qualify patients for medically necessary durable medical equipment.
Speakers will include Dr. Paul Hughes, medical director for Jurisdiction A, Mark Schmeler, Ph.D., OTR/L, ATP from the Department of Rehabilitation Science & Technology at the University of Pittsburgh, and Georgie Blackburn, vice president of government relations for BLACKBURN'S. The program is jointly sponsored by the American Association for Homecare, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and the Department of Rehabilitation and Technology at the University of Pittsburgh. The event is supported by an education grant from Pride Mobility Products.
CEUs will be awarded to participants attending in person or by video conference and significant time will be allotted for interactive Q&A after each presentation and at the culmination of the program. Previous audio difficulties have been fixed. The program will take place on June 18 at the University of Pittsburgh. Contact Kim Kianka at kimk@aahomecare.org for more information.
American Association for Homecare
2011 Crystal Drive, Suite 725
Arlington, VA 22202
703-836-6263
WE THANK OUR CORPORATE SPONSORS
American Association for Homecare
2011 Crystal Drive, Suite 725
Arlington, VA 22202
For more information, please call AAHomecare at (703) 836-6263.
www.aahomecare.org
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