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The transfer of ownership requirement, originally enacted by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA), would have put patients and their families at risk by creating serious safety hazards. Oxygen is a medically-prescribed drug subject to strict regulation by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and can be dangerous if not stored, administered or used properly. This transfer of ownership requirement would have required patients to manage the servicing and maintenance of their own equipment. Due to the fragile condition of many home oxygen therapy patients, requiring them to be solely responsible for the proper maintenance of their equipment is an unnecessary risk.
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"We thank our leaders in Congress for fighting to protect Medicare's home oxygen therapy benefit," said Peter Kelly, chairman of the CQRC. "Congress has taken the steps necessary to shield home oxygen patients and their families from the dangers of requiring vulnerable patients to take ownership of their equipment. As providers of home oxygen therapy and services to nearly half of all Medicare home oxygen beneficiaries, we thank Congress for its commitment to correcting flawed policies and ensuring quality care to 1.4 million Americans who depend on home oxygen therapy for their independence and quality of life."
Home oxygen therapy is both beneficial for patient health and cost-effective. This treatment costs the Medicare program $7.62 per day versus as much as $4,600 per day in the hospital. In 2002, there were 673,000 hospitalizations for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) with an average length of stay of 5.2 days. A government study by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality shows that long-term use of home oxygen therapy reduces hospitalizations and, when hospitalizations do occur, reduces the length of the hospital stay.
The Council for Quality Respiratory Care is a group of the nation's leading home oxygen therapy providers and manufacturers, representing a majority of the more than one million Medicare patients who depend on the home oxygen benefit for their care in order to live in an independent environment. CQRC members include AirSep Corporation, American HomePatient, Apria Healthcare, Invacare, Lincare, Pacific Pulmonary Services, Praxair, Inc., ResMed, Inc., Respironics, Inc., Rotech Healthcare Inc. and Sunrise Medical, Inc.
SOURCE Council for Quality Respiratory Care
