Members of the Senate and House have left for their August recess and will not return until September 8. Over the recess, the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) is urging its members, friends, family and co-workers to speak out as loudly and forcefully as possible to help ensure that the $56.8 billion in home health cuts in the House health reform proposal are not included in whatever health care reform proposal is enacted by this Congress (NAHC Report, Aug. 3). To help accomplish this, NAHC is embarking on a series of action alerts in NAHC Report during the congressional recess (NAHC Report, Aug. 6).
Each day over the August recess, we will focus on a different way you can make your voice heard. These will all appear at the top of that day's NAHC Report, starting with today's issue.
Following are 20 suggested grassroots action steps we plan to cover in more detail in upcoming issues of NAHC Report.
1. Attend a town hall meeting held by your member of Congress and ask for support of home health care in the health care reform effort.
2. Schedule face-to-face meetings with your members of Congress to discuss concerns regarding home health cuts.
3. Invite a member of Congress out on a home care visit. Get the media to come along.
4. Attend a candidate fundraiser for member of Congress.
5. Submit a letter to the editor or op-ed piece to the local newspaper supporting home care and voicing opposition to Medicare cuts.
6. Call in to a talk radio station and start dialogue on Medicare home care cuts.
7. Send a letter to your congressional delegation asking, “Where do you stand on $56.8 billion in cuts to Medicare home health services?”
8. Send message to all employees of your organization asking them to get involved and to write messages to members of Congress through the NAHC Legislative Action Network (NAHC LAN).
9. Send a message to all board members of your home health agency asking them to get involved and to write messages to members of Congress through the NAHC LAN.
10. Send a message to your past and current patients explaining the threatened cuts to Medicare home health care and ask that they contact Congress to ask for support of home care.
11. Send a message to all physicians that care for your patients asking them to get involved and to write messages to members of Congress through the NAHC LAN.
12. Contact other health care officials such as hospital administrators and explain the threatened home care cuts, asking them to send a message to Congress opposing the cuts.
13. Contact community groups such as local AARP chapters, senior citizen centers, and disease groups explaining the threatened home care cuts and ask that they send messages to Congress for support of home care.
14. Contact religious groups explaining the threatened home care cuts and ask that they send messages to Congress for support of home care.
15. Contact your governor and ask for support to stop Medicare home care cuts.
16. Participate in a nationwide petition drive opposing home care cuts. Get at least 100 signatures.
17. Use social networks on the web, e.g. Twitter, Facebook, to convey concerns about home care cuts.
18. Spread the word on sending a home care support message to Congress through the NAHC LAN to all your email contacts through a message that tells them to spread the word to at least ten more contacts.
19. Send a letter to your congressional delegation asking about their personal home care experiences.
20. Invite your House member to join the House Home Health Caucus.
WHAT TO DO TODAY
For today's suggested grassroots action step (see top of today's NAHC Report): Plan to attend a congressional town hall meeting.
- Go to your Congress member’s website to see if his/her recess schedule is published.
- If schedule isn’t published on website, call local office and inquire as to when the lawmaker(s) will be making public appearances.
- Review NAHC's Background/Talking Points.
- Speak out at a town hall meeting about the importance of preserving access to home health care, urge your representative and senators to oppose home health cuts, and ask them where they stand on this vital issue.
