President Signs O&P Provisions in Medicare Giveback Bill
Thomas, Peter
Description
Collection
Title:
President Signs O&P Provisions in Medicare Giveback Bill
Creator:
Thomas, Peter
Date:
12/22/2000
Text:
Yesterday, I attended a White House ceremony where President
Clinton signed his last budget bill during his two terms in office. The
budget bill contained the funding levels for the programs under the
Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Education. O&P
research and development at the National Institutes of Health received
another large increase in funding this fiscal year. The National
Association for the Advancement of Orthotics and Prosthetics (NAAOP) was
involved with the creation of the O&P research program within NIH and has
advocated for increased funding each year since 1991, with significant
success.
The Medicare Giveback bill was part of the bill enacted into law today as
well. This bill increases the O&P fee schedule by the CPI in 2001 and by 1%
in 2002. New federal standards for O&P providers are also included in this
bill. NAAOP began working on this issue back in 1996 when Congressman
Wexler became interested in the issue as a result of one of his
constituents, Tony Barr. A long and difficult legislative process ensued
and, in the end, NAAOP had some of the same concerns with the final version
of the bill that have been expressed on this list.
In fact, NAAOP spearheaded a coalition of organizations to change the bill's
language to allow the Secretary of Health and Human Services to determine
who was qualified to provide comprehensive O&P care, and take this
definition out of the statute. But the dye was cast by the time the final
language was public and changes were not in the cards. NAAOP will continue
to work with the other O&P organizations to achieve the best possible result
in the negotiated rulemaking process scheduled to occur over the course of
the next six months.
The Medicare Giveback Bill also requested the General Accounting Office to
study the impact of HCFA Ruling 96-1, the rule that restricts the definition
of orthotics. NAAOP provided Congress with background information on this
issue and again led a coalition of national disability and rehabilitation
organizations in opposing HCFA 96-1. In fact, just this week, NAAOP met
with representatives from the GAO to discuss the study they are required to
perform on HCFA Ruling 96-1. They are at the very beginning stages of the
process, but had already met with HCFA and were fairly well-versed on this
issue at the time of our meeting. NAAOP will be following up with
documentation to assist GAO in developing its report.
Finally, the Medicare bill also clarified that the 5-year DME useful life
criteria cannot be applied to prosthetic limbs. This is a change
necessitated by the actions of one or more of the DMERCs. Senator Bob
Kerrey was the champion on this provision and deserves great credit for its
inclusion in this bill.
All in all, it was a very successful year for the fields of orthotics and
prosthetics. To those who contributed and participated in the process, you
deserve sincere thanks. To those who did not, please remember that without
your continued support and involvement, your national organizations cannot
continue to represent the best interests of the O&P fields.
Peter Thomas
General Counsel
NAAOP
<URL Redacted>
Clinton signed his last budget bill during his two terms in office. The
budget bill contained the funding levels for the programs under the
Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Education. O&P
research and development at the National Institutes of Health received
another large increase in funding this fiscal year. The National
Association for the Advancement of Orthotics and Prosthetics (NAAOP) was
involved with the creation of the O&P research program within NIH and has
advocated for increased funding each year since 1991, with significant
success.
The Medicare Giveback bill was part of the bill enacted into law today as
well. This bill increases the O&P fee schedule by the CPI in 2001 and by 1%
in 2002. New federal standards for O&P providers are also included in this
bill. NAAOP began working on this issue back in 1996 when Congressman
Wexler became interested in the issue as a result of one of his
constituents, Tony Barr. A long and difficult legislative process ensued
and, in the end, NAAOP had some of the same concerns with the final version
of the bill that have been expressed on this list.
In fact, NAAOP spearheaded a coalition of organizations to change the bill's
language to allow the Secretary of Health and Human Services to determine
who was qualified to provide comprehensive O&P care, and take this
definition out of the statute. But the dye was cast by the time the final
language was public and changes were not in the cards. NAAOP will continue
to work with the other O&P organizations to achieve the best possible result
in the negotiated rulemaking process scheduled to occur over the course of
the next six months.
The Medicare Giveback Bill also requested the General Accounting Office to
study the impact of HCFA Ruling 96-1, the rule that restricts the definition
of orthotics. NAAOP provided Congress with background information on this
issue and again led a coalition of national disability and rehabilitation
organizations in opposing HCFA 96-1. In fact, just this week, NAAOP met
with representatives from the GAO to discuss the study they are required to
perform on HCFA Ruling 96-1. They are at the very beginning stages of the
process, but had already met with HCFA and were fairly well-versed on this
issue at the time of our meeting. NAAOP will be following up with
documentation to assist GAO in developing its report.
Finally, the Medicare bill also clarified that the 5-year DME useful life
criteria cannot be applied to prosthetic limbs. This is a change
necessitated by the actions of one or more of the DMERCs. Senator Bob
Kerrey was the champion on this provision and deserves great credit for its
inclusion in this bill.
All in all, it was a very successful year for the fields of orthotics and
prosthetics. To those who contributed and participated in the process, you
deserve sincere thanks. To those who did not, please remember that without
your continued support and involvement, your national organizations cannot
continue to represent the best interests of the O&P fields.
Peter Thomas
General Counsel
NAAOP
<URL Redacted>
Citation
Thomas, Peter, “President Signs O&P Provisions in Medicare Giveback Bill,” Digital Resource Foundation for Orthotics and Prosthetics, accessed November 9, 2024, https://library.drfop.org/items/show/215541.
