Joachim Zuther, Lymphedema Specialist.
Here is another update on the Lymphedema Treatment Act, written by Heather Ferguson, the Founder and Executive Director of the Lymphedema Advocacy Group. Please support the Advocacy Group’s effort to finally get this important bill passed by sending a message to your congressional office and your members in Congress; information to do so with links to template letters are provided below.
Here is Heather’s update:
After having a son born with primary lymphedema, I was appalled to learn that the compression garments he would need for the rest of his life were not covered by our insurance. That set me on the journey to closing this harmful coverage gap.
I first worked with my state Representative to get a private insurance mandate passed in North Carolina, then went on to work with my Congressman to introduce the federal Lymphedema Treatment Act bill. While this legislation is specific to Medicare coverage, it will benefit all patients, because other policies, both private and public, follow the standards set by Medicare.
It’s been a long journey and we’ve made immense progress. When I and other advocates first started contacting Congressional offices, scarcely any member of Congress nor their staff had heard the word lymphedema. Today this is the most supported healthcare bill in Congress, with nearly 80% of members cosponsoring the bill. This is a testament to the power of grassroots advocacy and the importance of one’s voice!
There are several reasons why we are hopeful that this is the year we will see the Lymphedema Treatment Act (LTA) signed into law:
- During the last Congress, the House of Representatives passed the LTA. Unfortunately, the pandemic struck soon after, and the Senate did not take up the bill. Although it will have to be passed by the House again in this Congress, because that does not carry over, prior passage does give the bill more momentum.
- Leadership changes make passage of the LTA more likely in this Congress. Whenever the same political party controls both the House and Senate it is easier to pass legislation. This is the first time in the history of the LTA that the Democrats have been in the majority in both chambers. Further, the LTA aligns with several of the key priorities for this administration – expanding Medicare coverage, making healthcare more equitable, and reducing out of pocket prescription costs. There is no pharmaceutical for lymphedema; compression therapy is akin to the drug therapy that is needed to manage most other chronic conditions.
- The re-launching of the Cancer Moonshot is a boon to our efforts. This initiative brings heightened awareness of and support for all things cancer-related, and with cancer treatment being a leading cause of lymphedema, this elevates the importance of our issue.
- We can now prove that the LTA will not only improve patient outcomes, but also save money while doing so. Last year our group commissioned Avalere Health to analyze the potential cost saving that would result through enactment of the LTA. Their analysis showed that improved access to care will result in a significant reduction in lymphedema-related complications, and is estimated to save the Medicare program more than $130 million dollars a year through prevented lymphedema-related hospitalizations. Savings would also result for private insurers and other public policies. This evidence for cost savings is significant, because the greatest hurdle a noncontroversial bill like the LTA faces is the cost. Our ability to now provide evidence for the inherent savings that would offset the costs is a powerful asset.
Our government functions at a frustratingly slow pace. I once read that a small bill like ours takes an average of 11 years to get passed! Typically, by the time you hear about a bill there are many, many years of work that went into getting that issue to the forefront. It’s no different for us. It’s been a long road, but if we don’t speak up and fight for this who will?
Even if you have taken action in the past, I urge you to do so again. Your constituent voice is incredibly powerful, especially in an election year. It’s not enough to contact your members of Congress once. You should be doing so monthly, and in a variety of ways. Our group provides advocacy tools that make this easy.
Please send an email to your congressional offices today. We need everyone to do so, even if you have in the past. A template letter is provided, so all you need to do is add any personalization you wish and fill in your name and address. Then, unless you opt out, you will get future communications from us about advocacy actions you can take each month to support passage of the bill.
Sending an email to your members of Congress takes less than one minute. Your voice matters. The squeaky wheel gets the grease. To be blunt, if you don’t care enough about this to contact your members of Congress regularly, why should they care enough about it to pass the bill? They can’t know how important this is to millions of Americans with lymphedema unless we tell them.
To get the Lymphedema Treatment Act across the finish line in 2022 we need everyone’s active participation – not just one time, but on a regular basis. Feel free to contact me with questions, and please take action today!
Heather Ferguson
Founder & Executive Director
Lymphedema Advocacy Group
Heather@LymphedemaTreatmentAct.org
LymphedemaTreatmentAct.org
LINK: https://www.votervoice.net/LTA/campaigns/90521/respond
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