Providers must refuse give in to “apathy” and must form a dedicated and united front in support of gaining as many co-sponsors as possible for H.R. 1717, the bill that would replace competitive bidding with the market pricing program, said Tom Ryan, CEO of New York provider Homecare Concepts.
Ryan made an impassioned call to action for providers to support the bill while speaking to attendees of the American Association for Homecare’s Washington Legislative Conference. A past AAHomecare chairman, he continues to sit on the association’s board.
Ryan noted that May marked the 25th anniversary of his company’s founding, and remarked how could not have imagined back then the sort of upheaval competitive bidding would pose for his business.
“I like many people in this room took the risk and started a business — the American dream,” he said, recalling a card that was given to him when he launched Definitive Homecare that bore the inscription “Tom, go for it” next to an image depicting someone leaping into open space. “I, like many of you, took that leap of faith and started a business.
“What I did not plan for was a flawed, ill-conceived government program 25 years later pull the rug out from under my leap of faith and sending my company down a spiraling death knell.”
Ryan told attendees that his well-known New York provider business bid on 35 contracts in the New York metro area CBA and won only one. He projected he will lose 30 percent of his revenue upon implementation of Round Two, which is slated for July 1.
More to the point, Ryan reminded providers that the plight his business faced was shared across the industry.
“The scenario I depicted is not unique to my company — it’s endemic to our industry,” he warned, explaining that the current situation was exactly what the industry and auction experts had predicted. “… Nothing was done to fix this fundamentally flawed program prior to its implementation.
“This has created today’s reality,” he continued. “That nearly 80 percent of good providers like you and me in this room will be excluded from providing bid items. ”
And that is why all providers must start getting truly involved and acting on behalf of their industry, Ryan explained.
“There’s no more room for apathy in this industry anymore,” he said. “I’ve seen it in the past. I’ve looked in the mirror and asked, ‘How did we get here?’ Well, we’re here today and we have to fix the problem. We have a job to do.”
Ryan exhorted providers to get behind H.R. 1717, as well as the dear colleague letter calling for CMS to enact an administrative delay to Round Two implementation, with unflinching dedication. The fact that the bill had garnered so many co-sponsors so quickly after its launch (at press time, the bill had 96 supporters in the House) was the result of that kind of dedication.
“This happened because we petitioned our government,” he exhorted the crowd. “Because we cared; we told our story. … Find some more homecare champions; tell our story with conviction. We need to get involved. Let’s get in the arena … let’s walk the halls of Congress and strive to do the deed with great enthusiasm and devotion. We need to stop this train wreck today. Out last chance to tell this story with passion and facts is today.”