Sept 21, 2004 - Washington, DC - MediCare Bill Alive and Well with 52 Congressional Co-sponsors

by Robert E. Marcus, J. D.

I am pleased to announce that, as of September 20, HR 1477 has the official support and co-sponsorship of 52 U.S. congressional representatives!

The Federal Acupuncture Coverage Act was first introduced in the U. S. House of Representatives in 1993 by Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D), (22nd district), New York.  This bill was written to cover qualified acupuncturist services under Medicare Part B and the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program.

In 1993, the bill had 5 co-sponsors.  Reintroduced in 1996, the bill also had 5 co-sponsors.  By 1997, the number of co-sponsors had grown to 17.  The fourth bill was introduced in 1999.  The number of co-sponsors had then grown to 22.  After the fifth introduction of the bill in 2001, and with the added support of organizations, particularly CAOMA, the number of co-sponsors increased to 36.

On May 18, 2003, at the Council of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Associations (CAOMA) board meeting in Los Angeles, Brian Fennen, et. al. of CAOMA and Richard Freiberg of the Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine National Coalition (AOMNC), signed agreements with myself for Marcus & Associates to lobby for passage of the Federal Acupuncture Coverage Act of 2003, (H. R. 1477), in the 108th Congress, (2003-2004).  See "Acupuncture Coverage under Medicare, CAOMA and AOMNC Take the Lead, "Acupuncture Today, October 2003, at www.acupuncturetoday.com/archives/october2003.

Since June 2004, Marcus & Associates has maintained a full-time presence in the Washington, D. C. area and has personally lobbied 119 congressional offices on Capitol Hill.

As the 108th Congress is nearing the end of its term, the number of co-sponsors on H.R. 1477 has reached a new milestone of 52!  The co-sponsors represent districts in 19 states, the District of Columbia and the Virgin Islands.  See the CAOMA website at www.acucouncil.org or the AOMNC website at www.aomnc.com for a complete list of co-sponsors and information on how you can help advance the effort to pass H. R. 1477.

The goal of AOMNC, CAOMA and Marcus & Associates is to secure the 100 co-sponsors that would convince congressional leaders that the bill deserves placement on a committee agenda for a hearing and possible vote.

Rep. Hinchey will introduce the Federal Acupuncture Coverage Act of 2005 early in the next session of the Congress (the 109th), which begins in January 2005.  At that time, the new bill will have a new number, and a new list of co-sponsors.  The new bill and its new number will be published on AOMNC's and CAOMA's websites. If your U.S. congressional representative does not appear on the list of co-sponsors for H. R. 1477, you should begin lobbying them for their support now for the 2005 bill.

Why should you care? First, think of the elderly patients who would benefit from acupuncture, but are not getting treatment because they cannot afford your services. Second, while you may prefer to accept only cash patients, and Medicare reimbursement will not be sufficient to cover your fees, many elderly have Medicare "Supplemental" policies that do cover the balance between Medicare reimbursement and "usual and customary" fees. Lastly, if you do not provide the services, other health care professionals will.

In April of 2004, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) system reviewed the efficacy of acupuncture for fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis after a request was submitted to cover such services. While the CMS rejected the requests, should they ever determine acupuncture to be an effective and covered service for any condition in the future, acupuncture provided by licensed acupuncturists would still not be covered, as licensed acupuncturists are not a recognized profession under Federal laws, and cannot be until Congress passes legislation to include you, as H.R. 1477 would do.

Practitioners who would like further information on H. R. 1477, and/or would like to contact their representatives, who are not yet co-sponsors, can contact me at Marcus_Associates@yahoo.com, so I can follow up.


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Contact Our Lobbyist:

Robert E. Marcus, J. D., of Marcus & Associates, is the lobbyist for passage of the Federal Acupuncture Coverage Act of 2003 (H. R. 1477) for the Council of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Associations (CAOMA) and the Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine National Coalition (AOMNC).

Mr. Marcus welcomes practitioners and patients to represent acupuncture and Oriental medicine as additional point persons in congressional districts across the country to lobby their representatives to co-sponsor H. R. 1477.  Robert Marcus can be contacted directly at Marcus_Associates@yahoo.com.  Up-to-date information on the H. R. 1477 lobbying campaign can be found at www.aomnc.com and at www.acucouncil.org.