14 Jun 2010

Stopping the Medicare Fraud Gusher

By Dr. Jane Orient, M.D.

By: Jane M. Orient, M.D.

http://www.aapsonline.org

All eyes are on the BP gusher in the Gulf, spewing pollution over the shoreline, but there's another big leak that will do even more damage to our economy: the one in the Medicare well.

Ever since 1965, when Medicare was enacted, the federal Treasury has been hemorrhaging dollars. Previously, "10%" was quoted and re-quoted as the amount of fraud. More recently, Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) alleged it to be 20%.

Like BP's oil containment dome, previous efforts failed to plug the hole. Despite hundreds of millions of dollars shoveled into the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Program (HCFAC) by HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), federal prosecutors say they need still more "resources" and "tools."

Attorney General Eric Holder is looking for people to prosecute for both leaks?which will do nothing to stop the pollution.

Containment efforts in new Medicare rules include requiring doctors to "revalidate" their billing privileges periodically. They'll have to show that their name, address, identifying numbers, and organizational status are exactly as registered. They'll have to give Medicare access to their checking account by electronic funds transfer (EFT) so that it can make immediate "adjustments" in case of overpayment.

The Patient Protections and Affordable Care Act ("ObamaCare") imposes additional screening requirements; some providers will have to be fingerprinted.

Ever-more aggressive private bounty hunters called Recovery Audit Contractors (RACs) are descending on doctors' offices, dissecting claims and patients' records, looking for a missing "bullet point" in the documentation, or an inaccurate digit in the billing code. ObamaCare increases the penalties for errors from $11,000 per item to $50,000. The government's burden of proof, already light, has been further decreased. There is no need to prove any intent to defraud, or even to show that any money was ever collected.

Also, the definition of "fraud" is expanded to include "unnecessary" services, "ineffective" services, or those that don't comply with Medicare requirements.

Prosecutors are making examples of "greedy providers." Dr. Ronald Poulin of Virginia was smeared all over the pages of his local newspaper before being convicted of "fraud"?that previously would have been called billing errors. Pictures of his home were posted on the internet?a nice house, bought with decades of hard work, now seized, along with his cars, his bank accounts, his medical license, his reputation, and his liberty. He sits in jail awaiting assignment to a federal prison.

One less oncologist will be prescribing expensive chemotherapy to cancer patients?and there are other effects that we don't see. Deterrence works. Trying to help sick people is becoming very dangerous.

But will these methods end the fraud? Dr. Kenneth Christman, a past president of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) (www.aapsonline.org), states that the amount of fraud is actually 100%, because Medicare is a Ponzi scheme. Today's soon-to-be-retiring Baby Boomers have been bilked as surely as Bernie Madoff's investors were, and their "trust fund" is full of internal government IOUs that can be redeemed only by borrowing from a bigger sucker.

Leaving ultimate Medicare reform aside, can we eliminate true billing fraud? Eliminating doctors does eliminate billing?of all types, by those doctors. But organized crime is said to be moving in.

As Malcolm Sparrow pointed out in a book by that title, third-party payment is A License to Steal. Payment is made for a "clean claim," not for a messy service. And despite the government's legal advantages, it takes time to go through the process of destroying doctors. So here's the overnight solution.

Make insurance fraud, like credit-card fraud, self-revealing. Do away with "assignment of benefits," which means paying the "provider." Mail all insurance payments to patients, in the form of a dual-payee check.

Dead or fictitious patients don't cash checks. Real people who did not receive a worthwhile service generally do not pay for it.

Fire the RACs, and put prosecutors to work fighting real crime, not creating crimes from arcane codes.  Restore the natural regulatory system of customers reading understandable bills. Don't put medical dollars into a huge bank vault that criminals can open with computer codes, and the practice of medicine into a bureaucratic prison.

Prisons don't stop leaks.

http://www.aapsonline.org

03 Jun 2010

June Health Briefs

By Aaron Conklin

Help your child cope with the "agony of defeat"

MADISON, Wis. - Summer sports competitions mean lots of children will have to wrestle with the disappointment of defeat in sports.

Parents can help by acknowledging the child's feelings.

That's the advice of Dr. Claudia Reardon of the department of psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

"Saying something as simple as, 'I understand you're feeling upset that you didn't win the race' can open up a discussion and let them know you're there to listen," says Reardon, an expert on sports psychiatry.

Focus on the things that went right on the playing field.

"Then you can examine whatever went wrong as an opportunity for the child to improve his or her skills," Reardon says.

Look at the big picture.

"I find it useful to ask children if they think their favorite athletes ever make a bad play or lose a race, and then decide to quit," she says.

Reardon urges parents to make sure that sports disappointment doesn't slide into bad sportsmanship.

(Contact: Aaron R. Conklin at (608) 263-5561 or aconklin@uwhealth.org.)

Tongue drops effective for ragweed allergies?

MADISON, Wis. -- Oral allergy drops delivered under the tongue could be a safe and effective alternative to controlling ragweed pollen allergies, according to a recent study.

"While the drops haven't been subjected to rigorous clinical trials in the United States yet, the early results are quite encouraging," says Dr. Robert Bush, professor emeritus of medicine at the School of Medicine and Public Health and one of the investigators on the multi-site study involving 115 patients.

Europeans have been using the therapy for years, but in the U.S. it has been approved only for research and clinical trials so far.

Study results showed that symptom frequency decreased for those who were given high doses of the medication, as did the need to take additional medication.

The therapy seemed to work best in patients who react to a single allergen - such as ragweed pollen - rather than several.

"We don't know how long people would need to be treated or the proper dose levels yet," says Bush. "But it's clear there's a lot of interest in this therapy."

(Contact: Aaron R. Conklin at (608) 263-5561 or aconklin@uwhealth.org.)

Calorie listings at your favorite drive-through?

MADISON, Wis. -- Americans can soon expect to see more restaurants posting nutrition information.

Since New York City's menu law went into effect in July 2008, California and Massachusetts have passed similar bills. Wisconsin has one in the pipeline and a federal version appears in the new health-care law.

"Providing accurate information to help people choose healthier diets is a small but constructive step that government leaders are likely to try out before more controversial strategies such as taxes or bans on particular foods and beverages," says Dr. Tom Oliver, of the UW Population Health Institute.

Such policies are driven by ballooning obesity rates - 26.6 percent of Americans were obese in 2008, up from 15.9 percent in 1995. They're also a response to the fact that the percentage of meals eaten in restaurants has nearly doubled since 1978.

"Doing a better job at preventing obesity and cardiovascular disease is good fiscal policy as well," says Oliver. "We need to keep people healthier to slow the growth of health care costs to individuals, employers and government programs."

(Contact: Susan Lampert Smith at (608) 262-7335 or ssmith5@uwhealth.org.)

03 Jun 2010

American Heart Association recruits teens to get 1 million people educated in CPR

By Ciara O'Brien Murray

IOWA, June 1 ? To reach its goal of educating 1 million Americans about CPR during CPR Week (June 1-7), the American Heart Association is calling on a new audience -- teens.

"We are reaching out to teens to create the next generation of lifesavers," said Michael Sayre, M.D., chairman of the American Heart Association's Emergency Cardiovascular Care Committee. "Teens can learn how to save lives and play an important role by setting an example for their friends, families and neighbors about the need for CPR and AED training -- and they can encourage the adults in their lives to learn CPR."

During CPR Week, the association will increase awareness about CPR and automated external defibrillators (AEDs) so more people will know the simple steps to save a life if someone suddenly collapses from cardiac arrest.

Anyone - teen or adult - can help the association reach its goal by:

· Playing the "Be the Beat" educational game or watching the Hands-Only CPR video at cprweek.org

· Taking a classroom-based course. To find a course, go to americanheart.org/cpr and click on the ECC Class Connector.

· Training on CPR Anytime, a self-directed, at-home CPR kit.  Kits can be ordered at cpranytime.org

Once people have learned about CPR via traditional instructor-led training or a CPR Anytime kit, they can log their experience at CPRweek.org. People who play the educational game or watch the Hands-Only video on the CPR Week site will be automatically counted toward the goal. A real-time heat map will track the number of people who have taken action in communities nationwide.

The association recently expanded its outreach to teens with Be the Beat, a program that encourages teens to learn what to do when someone collapses from cardiac arrest. Visitors to BeTheBeat.heart.org learn the basics of CPR and how to use an AED through a series of video games and interactive quizzes. There's also a playlist of 100-beat-per-minute songs to set the right pace for chest compressions.

Sudden cardiac arrest can strike anyone, anywhere. And when it does, a victim's survival depends on the people around them.  Skilled emergency personnel treat about 300,000 victims of out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest in the United States, but more than 92 percent of people who suffer cardiac arrest outside the hospital die from it.

Training more people to perform CPR - in its 50th year as a lifesaving measure -- increases survival by enabling more possible bystanders to handle an emergency.  Less than one-third of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest victims receive CPR from a bystander.  Without immediate CPR, the chance of surviving out-of-hospital cardiac arrest drops up to 10 percent for each minute that passes without defibrillation.  This means that by the time EMS personnel arrive on the scene it could be too late.

"CPR and AED training are critical to saving lives," Sayre said. "CPR Week is one way we hope to increase awareness about cardiac arrest as a significant health problem and get teens and adults to take action so more lives can be saved."

For more information about CPR Week, visit CPRweek.org.

25 May 2010

Safe Disposal of Unused Rx Drugs

By Grassley Press

Monday, May 24, 2010

Senators Klobuchar, Cornyn, Grassley and Brown Introduce Bill for Safe Disposal of Medication, Helping Keep Unused Prescription Drugs from Teens

Legislation promotes take-back programs to collect and destroy unused, unwanted, or expired medications

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), John Cornyn (R-TX), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) introduced bipartisan legislation today to provide patients with safe and responsible ways to dispose of unused controlled substances.  Patients currently seeking to reduce the amount of expired or otherwise unwanted prescription drugs in their homes have few disposal options, increasing the risk that teenagers will gain access to them.  The Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010 seeks to reduce that risk by permitting individuals and long-term care facilities to deliver unused drugs for safe disposal, and promoting the development and expansion of drug take-back programs.

"Parents know that keeping unwanted prescription drugs in their homes increases the risk that young people will find them, but current law provides them with few alternatives," Klobuchar said. "By making it easier for people to dispose of controlled substances they no longer need, we reduce teens' access to these drugs and help curb teen drug abuse."

"Abuse of prescription medications is a serious problem.  But because of overly restrictive federal laws, most people currently lack a safe option for disposing of dangerous medications.  This legislation writes some common sense back into the law by allowing responsible drug take-back programs to accept any person's unused or unwanted medications," said Cornyn.

"The abuse of prescription narcotics such as pain relievers, tranquilizers, stimulants, and sedatives is currently the fastest growing drug abuse trend in the country," Grassley said.  "Many legitimate users of these drugs often do not finish their prescriptions, and, as a result, these drugs remain in the family medicine cabinet for months or years because people forget about them or do not know how to properly dispose of them. It's important that we encourage people to dispose of their old or unwanted medicines so that these drugs don't fall into the wrong hands."

"It's critical that we treat prescription drug abuse like the dangerous epidemic it is," Brown said. "This legislation will make it easier for parents and facilities to dispose of controlled substances before they are abused. It is an important step in our fight against prescription drug abuse."

Up to 17 percent of prescribed medication goes unused, and if improperly disposed, may contribute to drug diversion and environmental problems. The bill would allow consumers to give controlled substances to specially designated individuals for disposal, such as law enforcement officials or pharmacists. It also would allow long-term care facilities to dispose of certain prescription drugs on behalf of their residents.

Keeping outdated prescription drugs in the home leaves drugs readily accessible to children and teens. Teenagers now abuse prescription drugs more than any other illegal drug except for marijuana, and the majority of teens who abuse these drugs get them for free, usually from friends and relatives and often without their knowledge.

###

24 May 2010

Grassley says NIH proposal would be a step in the right direction

By Sen. Charles Grassley

WASHINGTON - May 20, 2010 - Senator Chuck Grassley said today that changes proposed today by the National Institutes of Health, or NIH, to its conflict of interest policies for federally funded medical research would be an important step in the right direction.

The NIH has drafted new regulations in response to investigations by Grassley and others that showed that researchers failed to accurately disclose their financial relationships with industry.  The proposal announced today is now open for public comment for 60 days under the federal rulemaking process.

"Disclosure of financial relationships and the resulting accountability have been sorely lacking in federally sponsored research," Grassley said.  "I've worked for greater transparency through legislative reform and administrative changes.  I've urged the NIH to flex its muscle and use the power of its grants, which are prestigious and sizeable, to bring about transparency.  Enforcement of current requirements has been lax, and the federal agency has failed to send a message to grantees that accountability in this area matters."  The NIH awards approximately $24 billion a year in grants for medical research.

18 May 2010

It's National Dog Bite Prevention Week

By Mark Saunders

Dog bite prevention tips

CHICAGO ? Fifty-four Chicago U.S. Postal Service letter carriers were among the 2,863 postal employees attacked by dogs last year, yet that pales in comparison to the 4.7 million Americans bitten annually ? the majority of whom were children.

According to the City of Chicago's Commission on Animal Care and Control, nearly 2,000 Chicagoans are bitten annually. Fortunately, dog bites are preventable through training, proper control of dogs and education.

These statistics are part of the reason the Postal Service recognizes National Dog Bite Prevention Week®, an annual event designed to provide consumers with information on how to be responsible pet owners while increasing awareness of a public health issue.

"We often hear two tall tales at the Postal Service ? 'the check's in the mail,' and 'don't worry, my dog won't bite'," said Delores Killette, Postal Service vice president and Consumer Advocate. "Given the right circumstances, any dog can bite. Working with animal behavior experts, we've developed tips to avoid dog attacks, and for dog owners, tips for practicing responsible pet ownership."

To spread the word that dog bites are preventable, the Postal Service is working with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). Other organizations include the American Society of Maxillofacial Surgeons (ASMS) the American Society for Reconstructive Microsurgery (ASRM) and Prevent The Bite.

"Warm and wonderful relationships are shared between more than 72 million pet dogs and their owners in the United States," said Dr. Gail C. Golab, director of the AVMA's Animal Welfare Division. "To protect those relationships, everyone must take responsibility for preventing dog bite injuries."

"Any dog can bite," Golab added. "Even the gentlest dog, if it is physically or mentally unhealthy, is in pain, feels threatened, or is protecting its food or a favorite toy, can bite. Not only is it important to understand how dogs behave, it is important to understand how our behavior may be interpreted by a dog. To prevent dog bites, we need to find a common language. Finding that common language is the focus of effective dog bite prevention educational efforts."

"Half of all children will be bitten by a dog by the time they're high school seniors," said Dr. Alison Tothy, chair of the committee on injury and poison prevention of AAP's Illinois chapter. "It's so important for parents to supervise young children around dogs at all times, and it's just as important for children to be taught from an early age how to keep from being bitten."

Plastic surgeon Loren Schechter of Morton Grove, IL, knows all too well how devastating injuries from dog attacks can be. "More than 30,000 reconstructive procedures after dog bites were performed last year, up eight percent since 2008. Unfortunately, many of these surgeries were performed on children," said Schechter, member of the ASPS, ASRM and ASMS. "Children are frequently bitten on the face, which can result in severe lacerations, infection or scarring."

Kelly Voigt, 18, was the victim of a savage dog attack when she was seven years old, and needed 100 stitches to her face as part of her recovery.
"Dog bite prevention education cannot begin early enough," said Voigt. The experience was the catalyst behind the creation of Prevent The Bite, a non-profit organization that promotes dog bite prevention to young children. To date, Voigt has spoken before more than 10,000 elementary school students.

To help educate the public about dog bites, the AVMA developed a brochure, "What you should know about dog bite prevention," offering tips on how to avoid being bitten, what dog owners can do to prevent their dogs from biting and how to treat dog bites.

Tips include :  Pick a dog that is a good match for your home, consult your veterinarian for details, socialize your pet and  avoid aggressive games with your pet. To access the brochure online, visit www.avma.org/press/publichealth/dogbite/mediakit.asp.

The Postal Service places the safety of its employees as a top priority. Letter carriers fearing for their safety due to a loose or unrestrained pet may curtail delivery and ask homeowners to pick up their mail at the Post Office until the carrier is assured the pet is restrained. In cases where carriers see the dog roaming, delivery could be curtailed to the neighborhood.

The Postal Service offers these tips as well:

How to Avoid Being Bitten
  • Don't run past a dog. The dog's natural instinct is to chase and catch prey.
  • If a dog threatens you, don't scream. Avoid eye contact. Try to remain motionless until the dog leaves, then back away slowly until the dog is out of sight.
  • Don't approach a strange dog, especially one that's tethered or confined.
  • While letter carriers are discouraged from petting animals, people who choose to pet dogs should always let a dog see and sniff them before petting the animal.
  • If you believe a dog is about to attack you, try to place something between yourself and the dog, such as a backpack or a bicycle.
    •
How to Be a Responsible Dog Owner
  • Obedience training can teach dogs proper behavior and help owners control their dogs.
  • When a carrier comes to your home, keep your dog inside, away from the door in another room.
  • Don't let your child take mail from the carrier in the presence of your dog. Your dog's instinct is to protect the family.
  • Spay or neuter your dog. Neutered dogs are less likely to bite.
  • Dogs that receive little attention or handling, or are left tied up for long periods of time, frequently turn into biters.
    •

# # #
17 May 2010

Governor Quinn Signs Bill to Protect Small Business Workers' Health Insurance

By Rick Martin

Law Ensures Employees' COBRA Coverage Under Federal Recovery Act

SPRINGFIELD - May 15, 2010. Governor Pat Quinn today signed legislation into law that ensures unemployed small business workers in Illinois will receive continued COBRA health care insurance coverage and premium discounts provided under the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

"During these difficult economic times it's very important to extend a helping hand to those in need," said Governor Quinn. "This law protects workers laid off from small companies, and extends ongoing coverage and the premium discounts provided under the federal recovery act."

The "Mini-COBRA" law, Senate Bill 3004, applies to workers of companies with 19 or fewer employees. The law amends the Illinois Insurance Code and the Health Maintenance Organization Act to extend the duration of the insurance premium subsidy from 12 to 15 months.

The law also extends the eligibility period for the insurance premium subsidy from December 31, 2009 to May 31, 2010, the end of the period set forth in the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Under ARRA, employees who lose their health insurance coverage because they lose their job on or before May 31, 2010, can receive a 65 percent premium reduction, for up to 15 months.

The law also ensures that employees of small businesses will be eligible for the premium reduction for as long as the federal government makes it available under ARRA. Without Governor Quinn's action, former employees of companies with 19 or fewer workers would not be guaranteed the full benefits and protections provided under ARRA.

"In the best of times, families in Illinois are often burdened by high health insurance premiums with explosive volatility," says Michael McRaith, director of the Illinois Department of Insurance. "By virtue of this legislation that Governor Quinn is signing into law, individuals encountering the trauma of unemployment will have continuing access to subsidized, more affordable extended health insurance."

The bill was sponsored by Sen. Susan Garrett (D-Highwood) and Rep. JoAnn Osmond (R-Antioch) and is effective immediately.

Passage of the bill was backed by the Illinois Department of Insurance and the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Council 31.

###

17 May 2010

Debunking Myths of Diabetes

By Rachel Friedman

Doctor Reveals How Diet and Supplements Can Prevent And Treat Diabetes

The ranks of those who suffer from diabetes are rising, and the tragedy is that it is largely preventable.

That's the opinion of Dr. Sherrill Sellman (www.syntra5.com), who saw one of her own cousins die tragically primarily because they did not manage their illness correctly.

"The news about diabetes isn't good," she said. "The incidence of Type 2 diabetes in adults is reaching epidemic levels, which is not easy to achieve for a disease that is not contagious. Moreover, children are becoming diabetics at a faster rate than ever before. One in three children born today will become a diabetic in their lifetime. Over the course of the last 10 years, there has been a 1,000 percent increase in these cases."

The statistics from Wellness International Network tell a tale of a disorder that is running rampant in the U.S., which has been designated the most obese nation on the planet.

Between 8 percent and 45 percent of newly diagnosed cases of childhood diabetes are Type 2, associated with obesity. Whereas 4 percent of childhood diabetes was Type 2 in 1990, that number has risen to approximately 20 percent in 2010. Of children diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, 85 percent are considered obese,

One in four overweight children is being diagnosed with impaired glucose tolerance, an early sign of Type 2 diabetes.

"I watched two of my cousins suffer dramatically from diabetes-related blindness and then amputations," Sellman said. "One of my cousins eventually died from those complications. What still makes me cry is the fact that neither of them had to suffer. If they could have simply managed their blood sugar through diet and lifestyle choices, they'd both be living happy, fulfilling quality lives today."
Three myths that Dr. Sellman wants to debunk include :

  • It's JUST a fat person's disease -- "Being fat is not a cause of diabetes," she said. "Obesity is an indicator that someone isn't managing their diet and blood sugar correctly. You can be relatively average in terms of your weight, but still be at risk.

  • If I get diabetes, the meds will keep me healthy -- "Most people think diabetes is treated with insulin, and as long as you take your shots, everything is okay," she added. "But that's Type 1. Type 2 diabetes is typically treated with oral medications that have their own issues, including risk of congestive heart failure, heart attacks, stroke, chest pain, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and indigestion.

  • Diabetes can't be prevented or controlled just through diet and lifestyle -- "In most cases, diabetes can be prevented entirely through diet and lifestyle choices," Sellman said. "Moreover, research studies indicate that proper diet and exercise can help control other symptoms of diabetes like elevated cholesterol and hypertension.  Certain combinations of natural ingredients can boost those effects, such as the combination of nutrients found in Syntra-5 (www.syntra5.com), which was proven in a clinical study to reduce blood sugar levels three times greater than traditional diabetes pharmaceuticals."

Sellman is motivated by her family's stories to convince everyone that blood sugar that isn't controlled is an issue for everyone, and not just diabetics.

"At the rate we are going, simply being an American will place you in a high risk group for diabetes," she said. "I cannot stress firmly enough that people should do everything they can to get and stay healthy, and manage their blood sugar so that they don't have to suffer the way my family did."

About Dr. Sherrill Sellman

Sherrill Sellman, N.D., Naturopathic Doctor (Board Certified in Integrative Medicine), is an educator, women's natural health expert, psychotherapist and journalist in the field of women's health. She is also a much sought after international lecturer, radio host, senior editor and contributing writer to numerous health publications.  Dr. Sellman is the best-selling author of Hormone Heresy: What Women MUST Know and What Women MUST Know to Protect Their Daughters from Breast Cancer.

10 May 2010

Screening Clinic to be held by KAABA Shriners

By Eric Friedman

NO COST QUALITY MEDICAL CARE FOR CHILDREN

A Screening Clinic will be held to identify children from birth to 18 years of age

for possible treatment at a Shriners Hospital.

Children needing help with:

      • birth defects

      • orthopedic problems

      • cerebral palsy

      • cleft palate

      • burns & burn scars

      • juvenile rheumatoid arthritis

      • back injuries

      • scoliosis

These, and many other conditions are treated at the

Shriners Hospitals

    for Children

    with no expense to the family

    All applications will be kept strictly confidential.

9 am - 12 pm, Saturday on May 29, 2010

at the Masonic Center, 611 E. 65th Street, Davenport IA .

Sponsored by the Kaaba Shriners.

For questions please call our Office:

563-386-2526

1-800-670-5222

10 May 2010

Grassley Works to Improve Services to Veterans Living in Rural Iowa

By Grassley Press

WASHINGTON - Senator Chuck Grassley today said he has introduced legislation with Senator Mark Begich of Alaska to waive copayments for telehealth and telemedicine visits for veterans.  Last year, thousands of Iowa veterans enrolled in Care Coordination Home Telehealth, Clinical Video Telehealth and Teleretinal Imaging telehealth programs in Iowa.

"Telehealth has been a blessing for thousands of our veterans, but we want to make sure that thousands more aren't missing quality health care because of a co-payment.  Telehealth has been shown to reduce costs for the VA, all while providing improved services.  It's a win-win," Grassley said.  "Our veterans deserve to know that they can get the health care they are entitled without breaking the bank."

The legislation would waive the required copayments - sometimes up to $50.00 per visit - associated with a telehealth visit.  Waiving the payments would lessen the burden on veterans and encourage more veterans to take advantage of telehealth programs.

The Telehealth program allows the Department of Veterans Affairs to bring health care closer to the veterans who need it.  Telehealth has been especially important to veterans in rural areas and older veterans who have difficulty getting to appropriate clinics to manage their health care.

The Veterans Health Administration Telehealth programs have demonstrated reduced hospital admissions and clinic and emergency room visits, and contributed to an improved quality of life for our veterans.

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