| I want to update you on the AARC's efforts to pass legislation in Congress that would give homebound Medicare patients requiring respiratory therapy access to this care from respiratory therapists. A House bill (HR 2905) was introduced in July 2003 by Rep. Rick Renzi (R) of Arizona. HR 2905 was assigned to the House Ways & Means Committee as well as the House Energy & Commerce Committee. Through a letter-writing/e-mail campaign, the efforts of AARC's Political Advocacy Contact Team (PACT), and our lobbying, HR 2905 now has 37 co-sponsors in the House. AARC was very pleased this past July when a Senate companion bill (S 2707) was introduced by Senator Trent Lott (R) of Mississippi. S 2707 was assigned to the Senate Finance Committee of which Senator Lott is a member. The introduction of the S 2707 was due to the grassroots support for this issue from Senator Lott's constituents in Mississippi. Although recently introduced, we've learned that Senator Tom Daschle (D) of South Dakota (another member of the Finance Committee) has agreed to co-sponsor S 2707. Although neither HR 2905 nor S 2707 is expected to pass this year with less than a month left in this congressional session, our efforts continue in preparation for action on it when a new session of Congress begins in 2005. Recently, the AARC met with staff from Senator Blanche Lincoln's office to discuss the concerns of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) with this legislative effort. The language in HR 2905/S 2707 references home respiratory therapy provided as part of a care plan by a nurse or a physical therapist (PT) and that a respiratory therapist (RT) may go in place of a nurse or PT to deliver respiratory therapy services within the RT's scope of practice. The language in this legislation derives from Medicare regulations regarding home respiratory therapy and is designed to be budget neutral. APTA staff originally took a neutral stance on this issue since the legislation does not mandate the use of RTs. One year later, they expressed concerns with linking RT or any profession to PT in legislative language. Their concerns stem from difficulties they've experienced with legislative language grouping PT and speech therapy under the same $1,500 therapy cap – an issue entirely separate from this issue. APTA staff plan to review this legislation with their members involved in home health care and report back to Senator Lincoln's staff later this month. The AARC appreciates the support for this effort from the patient community and we ask you to encourage your members to continue to send e-mail/letters in support of HR 2905 and S 2707. An easy way for them to do this is to use AARC's Capitol Connection on our web site at www.aarc.org. E-mails from this web service do not bear AARC's name, but are sent directly from the writer to their Senators and member in the House of Representatives. The more support we gain for this issue now, the easier it will be to urge congressional action on it when a Medicare bill is considered next session. Please let me know if you have any questions or if I can provide you with additional information or assistance. Jill A. Eicher Director of Government Affairs American Association for Respiratory Care 1100 Duke Street Alexandria, VA 22314 703-548-8538 (Tel.) 703-548-8499 (Fax.) eicher@aarc.org BACK HOME |