Bush
Budget threatens home oxygen therapy benefit in
Medicare, another attack on elderly and ill
ALEXANDRIA, Va., Feb. 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --
Today, a group of organizations representing home
oxygen therapy patients, physicians, home oxygen
providers, and oxygen system manufacturers issued a
statement opposing provisions in the President's
proposed 2008 budget that would threaten the home
oxygen therapy benefit in Medicare.
The
group, which includes the American Association for
Homecare, the National Association for Medical
Direction of Respiratory Care, and National Home
Oxygen Patients Association, strongly objects to a
proposal in the 2008 budget that would force
Medicare patients to assume the burden of owning and
managing medical oxygen equipment in their homes
after only 13 months of use.
The
statement says, "We believe the proposed change in
payment methodology places an unfair, unsafe, and
unrealistic burden on the beneficiary." The entire
statement can be viewed at
http://www.aahomecare.org.
The
organizations are focused on chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease (COPD) patients and their safe and
effective respiratory management in the home. The
group is deeply concerned that Medicare policy is
increasingly at odds with the clinical needs of home
oxygen therapy patients, as well as physicians' and
home oxygen providers' ability to deliver optimal
home respiratory care.
The
typical Medicare home oxygen beneficiary is a woman
in her seventies who suffers from late-stage COPD
with associated severe low levels of oxygen in her
blood (hypoxemia).
COPD is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality
worldwide and is the only leading cause of death for
which both prevalence and mortality are rising. COPD
is a chronic, debilitating disease characterized by
severe airflow limitation resulting from chronic
inflammation of the airways, decrease in functional
lung tissue, and the dysfunction of pulmonary blood
vessels.
"The President's proposed budget significantly
impacts citizens least able to manage ownership of
respiratory medical equipment," said Jon Tiger,
president of the National Home Oxygen Patients
Association. "It leaves them without a network to
ensure proper functioning of the equipment and to
whom concerns can be raised. The proposal also
removes the incentive for manufacturers to
continually improve their equipment and will result
in used prescription equipment ending up in the
secondary market."
Tyler Wilson, president and CEO of the American
Association for Homecare, stated, "The proposed
change to home oxygen therapy policy will hamper
patients' access to the therapy and discourage
investment in new oxygen technology. We oppose
forcing ownership on the patient, which saddles the
beneficiary with unnecessary burdens. Moreover, home
oxygen has been the target of budget cuts for many
years. Congress has reduced Medicare reimbursement
for oxygen therapy by nearly 50 percent over the
past 10 years."
Approximately 15 million Americans have been
diagnosed with COPD, and an estimated 12 to 15
million more remain undiagnosed. COPD costs the U.S.
economy more than $18 billion per year in direct
medical costs and an estimated $11 billion in
indirect costs.
Medical oxygen is a highly regulated prescription
drug. Both medical oxygen and the systems that
deliver oxygen require a prescription from a
physician. Because of services required for
providing oxygen therapy, it is best suited to a
continuing, uninterrupted relationship with a
qualified home oxygen provider. Prior to the Deficit
Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA), the home oxygen benefit
in Medicare provided for rental as long as the
prescribed oxygen therapy was medically required by
the patient.
The
patient, physician, and provider organizations
endorse the new national COPD public education
campaign launched by the National Heart, Lung, and
Blood Institute, which is designed to encourage
better diagnosis, treatment, and awareness about
COPD in order to spare patients the suffering and
costs of this disease. (Visit the campaign website
at
http://www.LearnAboutCOPD.org.)
The
American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare)
represents all lines of service and therapy in the
homecare community, including home medical equipment
providers, respiratory therapy, infusion therapy,
telemedicine, and rehab and assistive technology. AAAHomecare
represents more than 3,000 member locations in all
50 states.