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Dear friends of NLN,
This is a historic time for
the lymphedema community
nationwide.
Our lymphedema diagnosis and
treatment bill has been given a
bill number and was introduced
on February 23 by Congressman
Larry Kissell of North Carolina
in the House of Representatives
as
H.R. 4662, the "Lymphedema
Diagnosis and Treatment Cost
Saving Act of 2010."
The bill was written by NLN
Legislative Advocate Bob Weiss.
During the last 6 weeks he has
worked closely with a
Congressional Legislative
Counsel and Congressman Kissell
to re-work the text. At the same
time we owe Heather Ferguson,
the young mom from North
Carolina, a HUGE thank you! If
you recall, she was instrumental
in securing the coverage for
treatment of LE in NC,
and convinced Congressman
Kissell to sponsor this bill. It
shows what dedicated individuals
can accomplish!
The bill has the goal of
reducing total healthcare costs
through avoidance of periodic
infections, pain and
disabilities resulting from this
medical condition. Specific
goals of the bill are:
-
to provide
diagnosis and treatment of
individuals with and at risk
for lymphedema according to
current medical treatment
standards, including manual
lymph drainage, compression
bandages, garments, devices,
and exercise;
-
to enhance
quality of lymphedema
patient care by providing
therapist qualification
requirements;
-
to provide
for lymphedema patient
education in the procedures
for self-treatment so as to
transfer the treatment from
the clinical to the home
setting;
-
to encourage
patient self-treatment plan
adherence by providing
necessary medical supplies
for use at home;
-
to expand
patient access to qualified
lymphedema therapy by
extending coverage to
qualified, trained
lymphedema therapists who
may practice under a
qualified physician,
physical therapist or
occupational therapist.
I
encourage you to contact your
local Representatives and
Senators. Urge them to
co-sponsor H.R. 4662 and to
introduce a similar bill in the
Senate. Stress the fact that
this bill is projected to save
hundreds of millions of dollars
every year in avoidance of costs
of treating preventable
lymphedema-related cellulitis.
This is a quality of care issue
affecting insured patients and
is complementary to healthcare
access issues. Time is of the
essence for you who have had
difficulty in obtaining proper
treatment for your LE. We may
never have a better opportunity!
You
may find your Congressional
representatives by going to
http://www.contactingthecongress.org
and entering your address.
Please forward the NLN office
nln@lymphnet.org the name
and contact information of your
representative and we will also
sent a letter to him/her and
copy you on the correspondence.
If you have any questions or
comments please contact
Bob or
Saskia.
Now
is the time for you to take
ACTION and show your SUPPORT.
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