Tag: Consumers

Advocacy efforts are on the rise, as we near the Washington Legislative Conference on May 23-24 and the industry pushes for relief for non?bid areas, structural reforms to the competitive bidding program, and a critical exemption of CRT accessories from bidding?derived pricing. This May, the HME industry will take The Hill by storm with hundreds of congressional office visits and a meaningful plea for elected officials to take a stand for homecare patients and those who serve them. One thing is clear:...

CHICAGO - Wheel:Life will act as a facilitator at the new “Abilities Meet Up Zone” at the Chicago Abilities Expo June 24-26. “In the tradition of a town square, the zone will be a dedicated area on the show floor where attendees can engage with their peers, experience the Expo more fully, and enjoy deeper connections as they learn from and share with exhibitors and other experts in the vibrant disability community,” Wheel:Life states in a press release. Lisa Wells, founder...

ATLANTA - Wheel:Life, an online community for wheelchair users worldwide, has published “Discovering: An Accessible US Travel Guide for Wheelchair Users” as an e-book on amazon.com. These accessible travel suggestions were gathered as part of the annual “Get Out & Enjoy Life” program, a joint educational initiative between Wheel:Life and Sports 'n Spokes Magazine. The book culminates a month-long education program and photo contest launched June 1. “We are thrilled to...

WATERLOO, Iowa - People for Quality Care (P4QC) has launched “Dear Medicare,” a website that features the stories of seniors and people with disabilities who are being negatively impacted by healthcare policies. “Our mission with Dear Medicare is to lift up the voices of Medicare beneficiaries and move readers to action through their powerful stories,” stated Kelly Turner, director of advocacy, in a press release. P4QC also has a Medicare Beneficiary Complaint Hotline...

WASHINGTON - AAHomecare has officially launched its “SaveMyMedicalSupplies” campaign with a website and Facebook and twitter pages. The campaign is designed to educate consumers about how Medicare reform mistakes are impacting their medical needs. The website explains coverage criteria and reform challenges to consumers in a way that's easy to understand, and empowers them with tools to contact their lawmakers. The campaign is targeted at consumers who have cerebral palsy, diabetes, multiple...

WASHINGTON - AAHomecare hopes its all-hands-on-deck approach to fighting competitive bidding and other “bad” Medicare policies will soon include consumers.The association on April 1 plans to kick off a new digital consumer advocacy campaign, called “Save My Medical Supplies,” to allow it to tap into a new outlet of support.“Many, many patients have been affected by these bad policies,” said Tom Ryan, CEO of AAHomecare. “Building awareness in the general Medicare...

WASHINGTON - AAHomecare plans to kick off a digital marketing campaign in April to drive consumer awareness of Medicare policies that are restricting access to home medical equipment, services and supplies.“This campaign will help consumers better understand why flawed policies affect their health and how they can make their voices heard,” said Tom Ryan, president and CEO, in a press release. “Consumers will be able to stand up and defend their access to the equipment, services...

Before I went to CELA this spring, I hadn't met anyone who used a wheelchair. I mean, sometimes when family members took my grandmother to a mall or Disney World, they'd grab a wheelchair to help her get around because of her sore knees, but that's about it. Before I left for DC, I did some googling to find out how to avoid any rudeness on my part when I met the consumers there. (Do you crouch down to talk to people in wheelchairs? Do you just pretend they aren't using one?) Luckily, United Spinal...

I followed CELA's New York team around Capitol Hill last week as they visited more than 25 congressional offices. I think I hit about 8-10 of those as I followed different people around during the day. One of the New York advocates was Paul Tobin, a consumer and the president and CEO of United Spinal. (He'll be back on the Hill in June for his organization's Roll on Capitol Hill, promoting HR 4378 again and other bills that would help United Spinal members.) Tobin is living proof of what having the...

WASHINGTON - Efforts to create a separate benefit for complex rehab technology began to gel this summer with a big endorsement from the ITEM Coalition. The coalition is a consumer group that raises awareness and builds support for policies that will improve access to assistive devices, technologies and service for people with disabilities. "We do look at this as a consumer initiative," said Don Clayback, executive director of NCART. Industry stakeholders planned to meet with coalition leaders...