2-01-07
Therapy Cap Repeal Legislation Introduced
The Medicare Access to Rehabilitation Services Act of 2007 (S. 450/H.R. 748) was introduced in the Senate and House of Representatives on January 31, 2007 for the 110th Congress. The bill will require substantial grassroots action in 2007 in order for the caps to be addressed prior to December 31, 2007.
The most recent legislation addressing the caps in 2006 came down to the end of the year, and took an extreme amount of effort and relentless grassroots action from AOTA, other provider and consumer groups, and members of Congress.
Due to a number of changes in the House and Senate, there will be a few new names as the chief sponsors of the legislation in both chambers of Congress.
Senators John Ensign (R-NV), Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Ben Cardin (D-MD), and Susan Collins (R-ME) will be the chief sponsors in the Senate. Senator Ben Cardin is new to the Senate, but was one of the lead sponsors of the repeal legislation when he was serving on the Ways and Means Committee in the House of Representatives. Also joining as original cosponsors in the Senate are Senator Daniel Akaka (D-HI), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Chuck Hagel (R-NE), Jack Reed (D-RI), and John Warner (R-VA).
In the House, Representative Xavier Beccerra (D-CA) will take the lead, and be joined by Representatives Phil English (R-PA), Mike Ross (D-AR), Chip Pickering (R-MS) and Roy Blunt (R-MO). Representative Beccerra replaces Senator Ben Cardin as the Ways and Means Committee contact for the repeal legislation, and Representative Ross replaces Representative Frank Pallone (D-NJ) as the Energy and Commerce Committee contact, who recently assumed responsibility of the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee. Representative Chip Pickering was added as the Republican sponsor from the Energy and Commerce Committee to replace the vacancy left when Representative Blunt left the Committee this session. Representative Blunt remains as a chief sponsor due to his past support and position as Minority Whip.
The bill is identical to previous repeal legislation, and seeks to fully repeal the law placing caps on Medicare Part B outpatient occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech-language pathology. The caps were implemented as a result of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. The Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 [Public Law 109-432] extended for one year the exceptions process to the cap that was in place for 2006. The exceptions process will expire on December 31, 2007.
AOTA will need significant grassroots action again in 2007 to urge members of Congress to support this repeal legislation. Go to the AOTA Legislative Action Center to contact your members of Congress (two Senators and one member of the House of Representatives) and urge them to cosponsor the Medicare Access to Rehabilitation Services Act of 2007 (S. 450/H.R. 748).
Remember, January was the beginning of a new session and this bill is considered "new" to the 110th Congress. Your members of Congress must sign on to the bill again now even though they may have supported the same bill in a previous Congress.