Complex rehab: Stakeholders reinforce efforts with new site
By Elizabeth Deprey
Updated Thu May 24, 2012
WASHINGTON - A new website will put all the resources stakeholders need to advocate for a separate benefit for complex rehab right at their fingertips.
The site, www.access2crt.org, which goes live May 30, will feature, among other things, an informational video on complex rehab, a position paper outlining the need for a separate benefit, and a one-page summary of H.R. 4378.
"If (you can share) a 10-minute video and you can give them three pages of information, I think that will give them a very good understanding of what you're trying to accomplish and why it's needed," said Don Clayback, executive director of NCART, during a webinar last week to prepare stakeholders to lobby for H.R. 4378.
The bill, introduced April 18, would separate complex rehab from the rest of HME, creating new coding, regulations and payment methods.
Currently, 11 representatives have signed on to the bill, including a mix of Democrats and Republicans, and members of key committees like Ways and Means and Energy and Commerce. That's a good start, but stakeholders must get many more supporters in the House and get a bill introduced in the Senate, Clayback said.
"If we can get that momentum before the elections, once Congress comes back, we can get it attached to another bill and passed," he said.
The site will also feature a registration option for updates as the legislative process moves forward, a running list of lawmakers who've signed on, and a button to help users contact Congress directly through a customizable email template.
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