Provider Groups Go Green to ‘Rock the Halls of Congress’

WASHINGTON–Hoping to countermand the numerous threats hovering
on the home medical equipment horizon this year, four industry
organizations are working together to get the message to Congress
about the value of home care and the critical role HME plays.

The National Association of Independent Medical Equipment
Suppliers, the American Association for Homecare, The MED Group and
the Van G. Miller (VGM) Group announced last week they will sponsor
a grassroots and consumer awareness campaign called “Rock the Halls
of Congress” that will culminate with AAHomecare’s annual
Washington Legislative Conference, scheduled March 4-6.

Together, the four organizations represent more than 4,000 DME
suppliers with more than 5,000 locations and 2.5 million
patients.

“We all agree this is a watershed year, and we have a very short
window in which to work … It’s now or never,” said Wayne
Stanfield, president and CEO of NAIMES, which came up with the
idea. “We either sit back and take what they throw at us or we do
something about it.”

The effort comes in a year in which the first round of DMEPOS
competitive bidding will be implemented and the second round is
gearing up, with industry-watchers expecting the likely result that
many providers will close and beneficiaries will suffer access
problems.

Congress is also mulling further cuts to oxygen reimbursement
and power wheelchairs. As well, CMS is lobbying against HME. At a
congressional briefing on competitive bidding last week, agency
officials said HME accounted for the greatest amount of fraud in
the Medicare system. (See “CMS Briefs Congress on NCB, Disses DME”
in this issue.)

“The additional dynamic … is that it is an election year,”
said Cara Bachenheimer, vice president of government relations for
Elyria, Ohio-based Invacare. “It’s a shorter year, and Congress
will go home in October,” she said, so “things will probably heat
up very quickly.”

With those factors in mind, the provider groups say timing is
perfect for the Rock the Halls effort to make sure the message
reaches Congress before July 1, when the first round of competitive
bidding is implemented. That’s also the date when the Medicare “doc
fix,” passed in December, will expire–and when lawmakers must
again come up with funding to avert a physician fee cut.

The new three-pronged initiative will start off with a massive
postcard campaign. Providers in the four organizations, as well as
members of the 30 state HME associations, will be asked to find 10
Medicare beneficiaries each to hand-write green postcards to their
congressmen.

The postcards “will express genuine concern in what [it means]
to the patient in terms of getting the service they need and the
continued high quality of service they are used to,” said Michael
Reinemer, vice president, communications and policy, for
AAHomecare,

The goal, according to Stanfield, is for 25,000 postcards to
reach congressional offices the week of Feb. 11-15.

The second phase of the plan will be provider visits to
congressional home offices during the lawmakers’ Feb. 18-25 recess.
Stanfield said the goal is 500 visits with the legislators in their
home districts, with each provider asked to take along at least one
beneficiary.

“The key to this plan is simple: Show up,” said John Gallagher,
VGM’s vice president of government relations. “Make the appointment
and go. Meeting a staffer is as good as meeting the members
themselves. Either way, the message is delivered.”

The third part of the plan is marshalling as many providers as
possible at the AAHomecare conference in March to make another 500
visits to congressional offices on Capitol Hill.

“This is like a military campaign: by air, then land, then
‘see,’” said Wayne Sale, NAIMES chairman. “First they get the
postcard, then we follow up with the ground forces at the district
level and then deliver the message in Washington where the
decisions are made.”

“It is all timing, and it is very well aligned,” said Stanfield.
“By the time we leave Washington on the 6th of March, it is my
guess that a lot of congressmen will know about DME.”

To encourage participation at the legislative conference, VGM
has pledged scholarships to state and regional associations so more
people can attend. A $500 award will be given to state associations
that send at least one member, and $1,000 will go to regional
associations (representing five or more states) that send at least
two people to the conference. Recipients must be association
members who have not previously attended the Washington event.

“To gain maximum participation, VGM will also offer an
additional $500 to each state association that brings three or more
first-time attendees, and $1,000 to each regional association that
brings six or more eligible recipients,” Gallagher said.

VGM will likely follow up with another “Jam the Switchboard”
event before the July 1 implementation of competitive bidding. The
group’s November Washington call-in netted over 8,000 calls to
congressional offices.

Another aspect of the NAIMES plan is the color green. Along with
the postcards to be mailed, talking points developed for delivery
to congressmen’s district offices will be on green paper. Name
badges for the AAHomecare conference may also be green, and some of
the information for visiting Washington congressional offices will
likely be green as well.

The grassroots effort is also placing an emphasis on consumer
awareness. Providers will be asked to share industry-written op-ed
pieces with their local newspapers so beneficiaries and the general
public can be informed about the issues of competitive bidding,
effects of the oxygen rental cap and elimination of the first-month
purchase option for power mobility.

In addition, Michael Schleipfer, a Massachusetts radio talk show
host who is also a member of the New England Medical Equipment
Dealers, has agreed to produce three radio spots that can be aired
as public service announcements. The radio announcements will focus
on competitive bidding, the oxygen rental cap and power mobility.
Providers will be asked to contact their local radio stations in an
attempt to get the spots aired, and they will be the contacts for
further information, Stanfield said.

Finally, providers will be supplied with petitions–also printed
on green paper–to make available to employees, family, friends,
caregivers and patients addressing the major concerns.

“Time is short and the stakes are high,” stated Tyler Wilson,
president of AAHomecare. “When NAIMES approached us with this plan,
it seemed like a perfect opportunity to bring more health care into
the picture and get the industry firing on all cylinders
quickly.”

“This is a powerful opportunity to get some word to Congress
early enough that it will make a difference,” said Stanfield. “It
is an opportunity to work together for one result. We’ve got to
change political minds before the end of June.”

In the end, organizers said, the “Rock the Halls” campaign will
depend on the efforts of providers.

“With the support of every HME provider, this campaign could be
a turning point for us this year,” stated Don Clayback, vice
president of government relations for The MED Group. “The key is
for every provider to get involved. While many have been working on
this in the past, we have a window of opportunity that requires
everyone to get on board to generate the biggest push we
can.”