A demographic time bomb is hurtling through space for an earth-shaking collision with our Medicare system. I'm talking about aging Americans and the cost of their health care needs. To help rescue Medicare, the government is launching a competitive bidding program for home medical equipment. This reminds me of the 1998 movie, Armageddon, in which an asteroid the size of Texas threatens earth. To rescue the planet, the government rounds up some oil drillers and sends them into space to blow up the misguided asteroid.

There is a scene where the crew is getting strapped into the rocket. Rockhound, played by actor Steve Buscemi, nervously comments, "You know we're sitting on 4 million pounds of fuel, one nuclear weapon, and a thing that has 270,000 moving parts—built by the lowest bidder. Makes you feel good, doesn't it?" Like the crew of roughnecks, home care providers do have a shot at diminishing the impact of competitive bidding by passing the Tanner-Hobson bill, HR 1845.

As the competitive bidding program draws closer and closer to putting a large number of providers out of business, many home care stakeholders (some more quickly than others) are getting religion about the importance of speaking to Congress and CMS. To underscore the importance of redressing grievances, here are 10 commandments for home care advocacy.

1) Thou shalt speak only the truth, and speak it clearly, succinctly, and professionally with stories about your patients and with short backgrounders as leave-behinds.

2) Thou shalt translate the rustle of thy grassroots into bountiful phone calls, e-mails, and personal visits.

3) Downloadeth talking points from AAHomecare's Web site and work with thy state associations and other stakeholder groups, but speak from personal experience.

4) Know thine issues and believe in them, but remember there will be times for compromise.

5) Be respectful of Congressional members since they are likely to hold office many years, and they have long memories.

6) Honor thy neighbors and advocates in the industry and build strong relationships with them for without them, thou art up the creek.

7) Study arithmetic that thou may count noses. If you can't count to 51, you can't predict victory or defeat in the Senate.

8) Honor the Congressional staff, including those who appear to be about 17 years old.

9) Runneth not out of patience. Sow the seeds of knowledge. If there is no harvest this year, the next session may be bountiful.

10) Be humble and vigilant in victories, however small.

Michael Reinemer is vice president for communications and policy at the American Association for Homecare.