February 1 Vote On Budget Bill Gives Homecare Providers Time To Fight, USA

Homecare organizations throughout the U.S. have been pushing for a NO vote on the budget bill, S. 1932, because of several provisions that would enact sweeping changes in capped rental policy, freeze home health reimbursement for 2006, and burdening homecare patients and hurting providers. Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert has tentatively scheduled a vote on the bill in U.S. House of Representatives for February 1, according to a report today in National Journal's CongressDaily.



AAHomecare, providers, and other homecare groups have been using the Congressional recess period to educate Congress about the negative provisions in S. 1932. One example: the New York homecare associations are working closely with other stakeholders to convey their concern to the state delegation in the U.S. House. NYMEP has been working with the state home health association along with the AARC, AARP, VNSNY, JACHO, and the state pharmacy board.



CongressDaily reports today that, "House Republicans expect to narrowly approve the bill [S. 1932] again, boosted by the President Bush's State of the Union Address the night before. But groups such as AARP, with 36 million members, are not conceding defeat, using the delay to aggressively target Republican moderates."



Modern Healthcare reported on homecare lobbying efforts against the bill in its January 2 issue: "Even more vocal is the American Association for Homecare, which is urging members to write their representatives in a long-shot effort to sway them from passing the bill. The House already approved the budget bill but must vote again because of minor changes made in the Senate. The home-care association said the bill will 'dramatically alter capped rental policy' for home medical equipment and deprive home health agencies of receiving the full 2.8% market basket update this year. A provision of the bill includes a rent-to-own policy for home oxygen after three years. 'Transferring the burden of maintenance and repair of sophisticated oxygen technologies to the patient, and therefore the management of their home oxygen therapy, presents a serious risk to patient safety and care,' the AAH said in a statement. 'This will produce the undesired effect of unmonitored and unregulated dispensing and distribution of a prescription drug.'"



For details, talking points, sample letters to beneficiaries, and other advocacy information, see aahomecare.


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