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By Kay E. Koch, OTR/L, ATP Last June the industry received a favorable ruling from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) exempting Complex Rehab Technology (CRT) power accessories used with Group 3 CRT power wheelchairs from competitive bid pricing. More work needs to be accomplished and passage of key legislation is critical for improvements and fixes for all CRT. Two important pieces of legislation that did not pass in 2017 have been carried over to 2018, HR 750 and HR 3730. This article will focus on one of them, HR 3730. What is HR 3730?   HR 3730 introduced by Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-NY and John Larson, D- Conn. provides for the non-application of Medicare competitive acquisition rates to complex rehabilitative manual wheelchairs and accessories. The idea behind this bill is to hopefully fix the disparity in access to appropriate equipment that wheelchair users face regarding competitive bid products and services.  As of the end of last year there was bipartisan support, 41 Republicans and 41 Democrats, for this legislation. Work needs to continue to add more co-sponsors and a push to get this legislation passed.  A bill supported by Sens. Bob Casey, D- Penn. and Rob Portman, R-Ohio, has not been introduced in the Senate, yet. The hope is that a companion bill will be introduced in the first half of this year. What can be done?

1. Log into protectmymobility.org See if your legislative member has signed on. If they have not you can also use this site to access their contact information to contact them to ask for their support for this important CRT bill.
2. Let your patients and clients know about this legislation and its impact to access CRT products and services. Encourage them to also contact their representatives in both the House and Senate.
3. Keep informed through updates provided by NCART.
4. Plan to attend the 2018 National Leadership and Advocacy Conference hosted by NCART and NRRTS April 25^th and 26^th in Arlington, VA / Washington, DC with the ability to visit your member of Congress during the conference. For more details go to ncart.us/crtconf.