Delaying Medicare Accreditation Requirement Date

Floor Speech

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Mr. MORAN of Kansas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Nebraska and the gentleman from Ohio for this legislation. I am a supporter of H.R. 3663. In Kansas and across America, the relationship between pharmacists and patients is a vital part of the way we deliver health care. Patients depend upon pharmacists for information counseling to ensure that they receive quality products and medical services.

My mom and dad are 92 and 93 and still live in my hometown of Plainville, Kansas, a town of about 1,900 people. My dad can be stubborn about going to the doctor because the doc may tell him he's not 100 percent healthy. But my dad has morning coffee with Keith Unrein, our local pharmacist, and Keith keeps a watchful eye on my dad's health. Access to pharmacies and other health care services determines whether Plainville and other Kansas towns survive and flourish, and we must protect and foster these health facilities.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has required pharmacies that provide diabetes testing supplies and other medical equipment to obtain accreditation by October 1, 2009, in order to dispense these important supplies to Medicare patients. H.R. 3663, as we have heard, will extend this accreditation deadline to January 1 and give Congress the time it needs to better address this issue.

Many Kansans live in areas with too few doctors and nurses to meet their primary care needs. At the same time, the average age of Kansans is getting older. Often pharmacists are Kansans' most direct link for health information and counseling and the only place for miles that we can obtain much-needed medical equipment to keep us healthy.

However, according to CMS's own estimate, 25,000 medical equipment suppliers will exit the Medicare program due to this new accreditation requirement. We should be encouraging our pharmacies and other medical professionals to provide care to their communities, not burden them with cost-prohibitive regulatory requirements that do not increase patient safety or expand access for these patients.

In conclusion, Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of this bill to protect Medicare beneficiaries' access to their necessary medications and supplies from their trusted pharmacist.

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