[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 24 (Wednesday, March 1, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E240]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    INTRODUCING THE PULMONARY AND CARDIAC REHABILITATION ACT OF 2006

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                   HON. CHARLES W. ``CHIP'' PICKERING

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 1, 2006

  Mr. PICKERING. Mr. Speaker, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 
COPD, is the number four killer in the United States, and it is the 
only condition in the top ten where deaths are increasing annually. 
Analysts predict it will move into the number three position within the 
next decade. But through pulmonary rehabilitation, doctors and health 
care providers are saving lives. This treatment is covered by Medicare, 
but confusion in the regulation denies many people the opportunity for 
this life-saving and life-extending treatment.
  As far back as 1981, the Health Care Financing Administration, now 
the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, recognized the 
importance of pulmonary rehabilitation and readily acknowledged it was 
a covered service under Medicare. But in the past 25 years, the 
Medicare program has not published a policy for coverage of pulmonary 
rehabilitation services, letting local Medicare contractors decide how 
best to cover the service. So in some parts of the United States, 
Medicare beneficiaries have no access to pulmonary rehabilitation 
because local Medicare contractors have no defined policy for coverage.
  So, today I introduce the Pulmonary and Cardiac Rehabilitation Act of 
2006, a companion bill to S. 1440 introduced by Senators Mike Crapo and 
Blanche Lincoln. I am pleased to be joined by my colleague John Lewis 
as a cosponsor of this reform legislation. This legislation clarifies 
Medicare language to establish a specific benefit category for 
pulmonary rehabilitation services.
  Organizations such as the American College of Chest Physicians, the 
American Thoracic Society, the National Association for Medical 
Direction of Respiratory Care, the American Association of Respiratory 
Care and the American Hospital Association have all signaled their 
support for this reform.
  Heart disease, along with other cardiovascular diseases, is the 
number one killer in the United States. So in addition to establishing 
a specific benefit category for pulmonary rehabilitation, this 
legislation would do the same for cardiac rehabilitation services. I 
commend CMS for taking action on cardiac rehabilitation and proposing a 
National Coverage Decision in December 2005. This bill would give 
legislative certainty and clarity to that action.
  Because CMS agrees that cardiac rehabilitation is an important 
covered service, there is no cost associated with these provisions of 
the bill. The costs associated with the pulmonary rehabilitation 
section are currently being scored by the Congressional Budget Office 
and are expected to be minimal.
  My mother recently experienced firsthand the benefits of these 
rehabilitation services at South Central Regional Medical Center in my 
hometown of Laurel, Mississippi. I hope this legislation will provide 
others around the country with the same health care opportunities that 
have so benefited my mother. I urge my colleagues to join me in 
supporting this important legislation.

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