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August 4: Fight Medicare Fee Schedule Cuts: Contact Your Members of Congress this Month


ASCO continues to urge Congress and the Administration to withdraw the proposed 6 percent cut to oncology in the Medicare physician fee schedule.

In order to ensure that policymakers fully understand the potential impact of these cuts on your patients, they need to hear directly from you, their constituents.

August is a prime opportunity for you to interact with your Members of Congress in person, when they will be in their home districts. Members of the House of Representatives are already in their home districts, and Senators will be heading back to their home states at the end of this week.

To preserve patient access to cancer care, we urge you to contact your member of Congress during the August recess. Here’s how:

  • Attend a Town Hall Meeting: Most Members of Congress host Town Hall meetings when they are in their home districts. At these events, you can ask questions, introduce yourself, and tell your Representative and Senators about the issues that affect you and your patients. Most legislators post scheduled town hall meetings on their Web site. (Members’ Web sites can be found at www.house.gov or www.senate.gov.) ASCO has also developed tips for attending a town hall meeting to help you prepare.
  • Schedule an In-person Meeting: A face-to-face meeting with your Member of Congress or the Member’s staff is often the best way to share your concerns. ASCO has composed a guide on scheduling and preparing for in person meetings.
  • Host a Site Visit: Invite your Member of Congress to your office, where you will have the opportunity to educate the Member and his/her staff on what happens in a research facility or an oncology practice. ASCO’s Web site offers guidance on how to schedule and prepare for a site visit.

Your greatest strength in communicating to your Member of Congress is your experience as an oncologist treating people with cancer. Your Member of Congress needs to hear your perspective and learn first-hand from you about how continued cuts to Medicare will impede your ability to care for cancer patients.

ASCO also has developed a Web page, “Cancer Policy and Health Care Priorities,” that provides up-to-date information on action ASCO is taking to fight the fee schedule cuts, and to make the voice of the oncologist heard in health care reform debates.

If you are unable to attend any Congressional events or meet with your Member of Congress in August, please visit ASCO’s Grassroots Action Center, and call or email your Representative and Senators to let them know how the proposed Medicare cuts will affect your ability to provide care to your patients.

If you have any questions, please contact ASCO's Cancer Policy and Clinical Affairs Department at 571-483-1670 or grassroots@asco.org.





 
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