I would like to share my thoughts on some behind-the-scenes activity that I would like to bring to light.

In recent months, the industry has been fighting the battle of its life to educate the legislature about competitive bidding. The American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) has done an excellent job of leading this effort and reporting to its membership on a weekly basis. Likewise, the trade publications have done an outstanding job of reporting the evolving status of proposed legislation as it transpires.

A couple of low profile efforts need to be recognized. VGM has done an outstanding job of organizing visits and fund-raisers for Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) and Iowa congressional representatives. John Gallagher, VGM’s vice president of government relations, has also done a great job of attending town hall meetings, lobbying on Capitol Hill to oppose competitive bidding, and distributing a weekly update on the status of health care legislation.

In addition, Invacare has been a dynamic force in active lobbying on Capitol Hill. I was fortunate enough to be invited to two fund-raisers at the home of its chairman and CEO, Mal Mixon, this summer. The first was for Senator Grassley, and the second was for Representative David L. Hobson (R-Ohio). Both of these events were attended by dozens of supporters, and those of us from the home health care industry had ample opportunity to spend time face-to-face with these key legislators.

David Williams, Invacare’s recently retired director of government relations, also had Representative Ralph Regula (R-Ohio) at the Hobson event, and several Ohio state legislators were also in attendance.

Finally, I would like to salute the board of AAHomecare. There are several members on the board who have supported these fund-raisers on Capitol Hill and in the legislators’ home districts faithfully with both their dollars and their time and expertise.

It is imperative that every member of this industry understand the need for involvement. Legislation and regulatory initiatives are a lot like physics. For every action, there is an equal or opposite reaction—sometimes several opposing reactions! In other words, those who can apply the greatest force on the direction of legislation have the best chance to end up where they want to be.

The home health care industry has a lot of work to do. We have the least amount of legislative “clout” of virtually all health care systems, yet carry the burden of being the fastest growing sector of health care expenditures. Every owner, manager, and front-line employee needs to have a passion about why he or she is in this business. It simply is not enough to just provide quality products and services. We must make a commitment to ourselves, our patients, and our peers to do at least one activity every week that will help make a difference.

How much time does it really take to make one phone call to a legislator or to log onto a Web site and send emails to key legislative offices? How much effort is it to forward a letter to some of your patients asking for their help in supporting the services you provide? Make a conscious decision to set aside 15 to 30 minutes and make this happen. If every company had consistent participation from only a few of its employees/managers, we could have a profound impact on our legislators. It is time for us to stop blaming the government for our problems, and to actively support our state and national organizations in their efforts to ensure a future that will allow our businesses to survive and thrive.

Tim Pontius
President/CEO
Young Medical Equipment
Toledo, Ohio