Obama Sets the Stage for Health Care Reform

WASHINGTON — The rebuilding of the nation’s health care
structure will be led by former South Dakota Sen. Tom Daschle in a
dual role as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services and director
of the newly formed White House Office of Health Reform, President-elect Barack Obama announced last
week.

Calling Daschle the “lead architect” of the reform plan, Obama
also announced Jeanne Lambrew as the deputy director of the White
House Office of Health Reform. Lambrew, a professor of public
affairs at the University of Texas, was Daschle’s co-author on a
book on health care called “Critical: What
We Can Do about the Health Care Crisis,” and also worked on
health policy in the Clinton administration.

In making the announcements, Obama tagged health care as a high
priority even in the face of the nation’s collapsing financial
structure.

“Year after year, our leaders offer up detailed health care
plans with great fanfare and promise, only to see them fall,
derailed by Washington politics and influence peddling,” Obama
said. “This simply cannot continue.”

He added, “It’s not something that we can put off because we are
in an emergency. This is part of the emergency.”

For his part, Daschle, in remarks at the press conference
announcing his appointment, said fixing health care “is—and
has been for many years—our largest domestic policy
challenge. We have the most expensive health care system in the
world, but we are not the healthiest nation in the world. Our
growing costs are unsustainable, and the plight of the uninsured is
unconscionable.”

Daschle will waste no time plunging into the system’s reform.
Earlier, he announced that the Obama administration would seek
public input on health care reform from citizens via community
meetings and house parties to be held across the country beginning
today and continuing through Dec. 31. Daschle said last week that
he would be attending some of those meetings.

Anyone can sign up to hold a meeting by registering on
Obama’s transition Web site. Those signing up can get a special
moderator kit to get the discussion going. Data from the meetings
will be published on the Web site.

Walt Gorski, vice president of government relations for the
American
Association for Homecare, applauded the idea.

“At these types of meetings, people typically outline problems,”
he said. “What this will do is show the shortcomings for those who
have insurance as well as highlight the horrific stories of people
who do not have insurance and face health problems.”

Gorski and others also noted that the meetings could provide
forums for the HME industry to get its message out.

“These forums will be an opportunity for us to raise awareness
of HME and also highlight some of our broad themes, such as the
value we bring to patients,” Gorski said. He added that even though
it is unlikely the industry would be able to drill down to issues
like competitive bidding
and the 36-month oxygen rental cut, the forums “provide a very good
opportunity to raise our issues.”

Cara Bachenheimer, senior vice president of government relations
for Elyria, Ohio-based Invacare, said industry stakeholders need to seize the
opportunity to educate Obama and his staff about home care.

“There are new audiences, fresh faces,” she said, adding that
many of those who had negative views of home care will be gone with
the new administration. She suggested that providers not only take
part in the town hall meetings but that they involve patients to
help tell the HME story.

“Bring somebody who is an actual user of oxygen or a mobility
device,” she advised. “That would be great. Keep the message
simple. Talk about how people prefer to be cared for in their
homes. Make it personal.”

The town hall meetings offer the HME industry not only a place
at the table but also a view of a developing health reform plan,
according to Seth Johnson, vice president for government affairs
for Pride
Mobility Products, Exeter, Pa.

The process that Obama’s team has set into play, he said, offers
transparency and will allow the industry to “monitor the health
care plan to make sure that any future plan does not limit or
insufficiently cover DME. I see it as a real significant
opportunity for the industry to work with the new
administration.”

Both Johnson and Bachenheimer said they believe Daschle will
bring a good understanding of home health care to the HHS
office.

“I am very confident that we are going to have a friendly ear in
Tom Daschle in articulating our message and promoting and seeing
the benefits of home care included in future health reform plans,”
Johnson said.

That Daschle will have his hands full with his two jobs is
likely an understatement. In addition to an overhaul of the health
care system, broad changes in the way Medicare and Medicaid are
administered are expected, as are changes in the State Children’s
Health Insurance Program.

For the HME industry, controversy over the looming 36-month
oxygen cap, the 9.5 percent reimbursement cut in 10 Medicare
product categories and the probable return of competitive bidding
are all likely to involve Daschle somehow.

Meanwhile, Obama’s call for public input on health care has
prompted member services organization VGM Group to schedule a town hall meeting in Waterloo, Iowa. The event will be
held at 10:30 a.m. Friday at the company’s corporate headquarters
at 1111 W. San Marnan Drive.

The member services group has invited Democratic Sen. Tom
Harkin, and Republican Sen. Charles Grassley and Democratic Rep.
Bruce Braley to attend, as well as area hospital administrators,
referral sources, physicians and Medicare beneficiaries.

“VGM has been serving the home health care marketplace for 20
years and the American people, and [is] happy to participate in the
conversation about health care reform,” said Van G. Miller, CEO and
founder.