'Hill Days' got the message across
Everyone involved in advocacy
Advocacy is more important than ever before, with the current health care reform proposals being considered by Congress. Hospice representatives saw the benefit of actively talking with congressional members about the implications of their decisions when the time frame for the elimination of the budget neutrality adjustment factor (BNAF) was increased from two to seven years.
Efforts to educate legislators about the effects of elimination of BNAF in such a short period were spearheaded by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) in Alexandria, VA.
In April 2009, NHPCO sponsored a Capitol Hill Day, during which more than 500 hospice representatives met with U.S. senators and representatives. Three of the hospice representatives in the group were from Harbor Hospice in Muskegon, MI. "We went to the conference and participated in the Capital Hill Day because it was a good way to make a collective impression on legislators," recalls Mary Anne Gorman, LMSW, ACSE, executive director of the agency. "We invited our local representative to visit our agency when she returned to our district."
Although Capitol Hill Day was successful, an extra push to educate legislators was held in July. Jonathan Keyserling, JD, vice president of public policy for NHPCO, says, "Virtual Hill Day was a coordinated effort to continue the efforts we initiated in April." On July 15, all NHPCO members received an e-mail from the association with names and contact information for public officials and talking points to use when discussing BNAF. Members were encouraged to take 15-20 minutes of their day to call or write.
"Over 12,000 contacts were made on July 15 and July 16," points out Keyserling. "I believe that this shows how attuned the hospice industry is to the issue of rate cuts."
Virtual Hill Day activities varied from hospice to hospice. Advocacy is part of everyday business for Casa de la Luz Hospice in Tucson, AZ, but the NHPCO conference call to talk about BNAF and other hospice-related issues was an opportunity to hold an event that helped focus efforts to fight misinformation, says Carol Clark, director of volunteers. "We held a luncheon for the agency's management team at the same time as the conference call," she explains. "The purpose of bringing everyone together was to make sure everyone was on the same page and to reinforce the message we want to share with our legislators and community." Ensuring that all managers and supervisors have the same information makes it possible to accurately answer questions from employees, volunteers, and patients, Clark adds.
One of the clinical managers at Harbor Hospice called the White House on Virtual Hill Day, and she is sure that her message was passed along, Gorman says. "When the White House operator answered, the manager explained that she was calling to urge the president to roll back the rate reduction," she says. "The operator then began to tell the manager that she believed that hospice was important and she described her personal experience with hospice care received by a family member." The operator talked for 20 minutes, then ended by saying, "I was supposed to take this call, because it is a topic I believe to be important."
Gorman adds, "There are a lot of people with wonderful hospice stories to share. We just have to listen to them and give them a chance to tell their stories to others who can make sure hospice is available to everyone."
Advocacy is more important than ever before, with the current health care reform proposals being considered by Congress.You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
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