Dec. 1, 2003 - Washington, DC - The Federal Acupuncture (in MediCare) Coverage Act Needs Citizen Support

By Robert E. Marcus, J. D., Lobbyist

On September 10, 2003,  Congressman Tom Udall (D), 3rd district, New Mexico, signed on as a co-sponsor of H. R. 1477, the Federal Acupuncture Coverage Act of 2003.  Rep. Maurice D. Hinchey (D), 22nd district, New York, introduced H.R.1477  on March 27, 2003 on behalf of the acupuncture profession.  In addition to Rep. Udall and Rep. Hinchey, there are 41 other co-sponsors.  A complete list of congressional co-sponsors of H. R. 1477 is posted on the website of the Council of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Associations (CAOMA), Medicare Campaign, at www.acucouncil.org, and on the website of the Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine National Coalition (AOMNC) at www.aomnc.com.

H. R. 1477 is the 6th attempt to pass the Federal Acupuncture Coverage Act.  This bill was first introduced in 1993 by Rep. Hinchey, and reintroduced  in each of the subsequent Congresses. (A "new" Congress is elected every two years, so bills must be re-introduced and co-sponsors added anew).

H. R. 1477 covers "qualified acupuncturist services" under Medicare Part B by amending Title 18 of the Social Security Act, and acupuncturists under the Federal Employee Health Benefits (FEHB) program by amending Title 5 of the United States Code.  Unless the Congress includes "qualified acupuncturist services" as a statutorily mandated benefit service under Medicare, Medicare cannot reimburse DOMs in New Mexico for treating Medicare beneficiaries.

H. R. 1477 defines a "qualified acupuncturist" as an individual who has been "certified, licensed or registered as an acupuncturist by a state (or the state regulatory mechanism provided by state law)."

H. R. 1477 defines "qualified acupuncturist services" as "such services furnished by a qualified acupuncturist," and "such services and supplies furnished as an incident to services furnished by the qualified acupuncturist, which the qualified acupuncturist is legally authorized to perform under state law (or the regulatory mechanism provided by state law).  (For text of H. R. 1477 see above-cited websites.)

Local support from Representatives' Congressional District constituents  is key to its passage.  57 additional co-sponsors are needed to open the door for a congressional hearing of H. R. 1477 before the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health.  I, therefore, invite all DOMs who are constituents of Rep. Heather Wilson (R), 1st district, Albuquerque, and Rep. Steve Pearce (R), 2nd district, southern New Mexico, to call and write, tell them you support H. R. 1477, urge them to co-sponsor it, and possibly offer them and their staff a treatment.

You can call Rep. Wilson at her district office in Albuquerque at (505) 346-6781.  To e-mail Rep. Wilson, go to her website at www.wilson.house.gov.  You can call Rep. Pearce at his district offices in Las Cruces at (505) 522-2219, in Roswell at (505) 622-0055, in Hobbs at (505) 392-8325, and in Socorro at (505) 838-7516.  To e-mail Rep. Pearce, go to his website at www.house.gov/pearce.  

A sample constituent letter is posted on both the CAOMA and the AOMNC websites.

Once you have contacted your congressperson by telephone or by letter, please contact me at Marcus_Associates@yahoo.com, (note underscore following my name), at Marcus & Associates, 731 Westholme Avenue, Los Angeles, California 90024, (276) 492-80981, and provide me with the date of your constituent contact and the name of the congressional staff person with whom you spoke, so I can follow up with Rep. Wilson's and Rep. Pearce's Health Aides on Capitol Hill. Between your grass-roots efforts, my professional lobbying services, and every organizations' support, we hope to win over the many co-sponsors we need.

If you are in Rep. Udall's district, you may want to  thank him with a call or letter.  You can call Rep. Udall at his district offices in Santa Fe at (505) 984-8950, in Rio Rancho at (505) 994-0499, in Clovis at (505) 763-7616, in Gallup at (505) 863-0582, in Farmington at (505) 324-1005, and in Las Vegas at (505) 454-4080.  To e-mail Rep. Udall, go to his website at www.house.gov/tomudall.


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

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.