I was asked last month about the destructive path the DME industry seems to be on. It seems that the government is hell-bent on making the DME benefit, and thus the industry, go away. Perhaps because the government never hears from us until there is a crisis, and even then, that crisis always seems directly related to money. We never quite seem to be proactive in offering solutions. We advance every day, doing a great job caring for our patients and customers. Then we are attacked by Congress who has begun capping oxygen, passing competitive bidding, cutting reimbursements or passing laws that result in rules that make us work harder for less. Perhaps because we seem to sit back and wait for someone else to fight our fights. What this industry needs is some of the fire and spirit that has brought out thousands of people in support of health care reform rallies around the country. We need hundreds of suppliers to be angry and refuse to accept this abuse! We need hundreds of suppliers to get involved, join their state DME association and join our unified national association, AAHomecare. Whether at the district level in Washington or through direct advocacy, the goal is to get the message of home care heard by members of Congress. Some suppliers think they don’t need to belong to a national organization. That’s flawed thinking, because AAHomecare lobbies Washington directly for DME causes and is doing a great job with grassroots efforts to push the message of home care to Washington. If you want to see change in Washington, you have to take action—waiting for someone else is not action. Without some passion and fire from you and thousands of other suppliers, this industry is doomed to the constant threats of the past. If you don’t care enough about your business to fight for it, why should anyone else? That’s why you see other sectors of health care winning more fights. They support the people who fight for them. When the physician, pharmacist, infusion, rehab and home health associations boast memberships in the tens of thousands, how do we win fights with a few hundred suppliers belonging to our national association? I hear suppliers say, “I can’t afford to belong,” and I say to them, “You can’t afford not to if you want to be here next year!” We know Washington is a huge minefield for DME suppliers. Many in Congress have no clue as to the value of DME suppliers in lowering the cost of health care. Have you told them your value? Many in Congress see us as retailers who do everything possible to make money by fleecing Medicare and Medicaid. Have you told them you’re not? CMS believes we are commodity dealers who provide no after-sales service. Have you told them we are invested in the continued care of our customers? Here’s what you can do to change the future of DME for your company and for the rest of us. First, write a check for the few hundred dollars that it takes to join your state association. After you join, attend the meetings and volunteer to serve on the board. Second, write a check for the few hundred dollars it takes to join our national DME trade association. Whether it is at the state level or the national level, trade associations can’t help anyone without members and dues revenue. Winston Churchill said, “Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.” I fear our losses to Congress and CMS have stolen our enthusiasm and our passion, and soon those losses will steal our future as an industry. To change it, you need to get involved. As I retire and leave the national stage, I urge you to continue strong and ongoing support for AAHomecare. I recently received an e-mail reply from a good friend and fellow supplier whose response to the AAHomecare membership renewal plea was, “We don’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of stopping the bidding program.” My words in reply were meant to motivate him, and now to motivate you, “We will certainly have no chance in hell if we quit now.” According to Churchill, “If you’re going through hell, keep going.” Keep going and keep fighting. We can change our future.
