ACR volunteer leaders, members and patient advocates will head to Capitol Hill in a few weeks to advocate for policies beneficial to the rheumatology community. The ACR’s volunteer-directed Government Affairs Committee selects the issues each year that advocates will take to Congress based on salience for members and what is most likely to move forward with bipartisan support on Capitol Hill.
Even if you are not joining the ACR on Capitol Hill, you can make a difference by advocating with your representatives on the issues that are impacting you—just visit the ACR’s legislative action center for pre-written messages that you can edit and send on these issues.
This year, advocates will have a slate of issues to choose from to ensure that each attendee is able to advocate for the policies most impactful to them.
Sustainability of Access to Care
Advocates will ask Congress to pass legislation to stabilize physician reimbursement rates under Medicare and protect the Medicaid program from cuts. As the rheumatology community is well aware, stagnant reimbursement rates threaten beneficiaries access to care, and cuts to Medicaid only exacerbate these threats.
Research Funding
Vital for the rheumatology community, advocates will be focusing on two issues in support of robust funding for rheumatology-focused research. First, advocates will urge Congress to follow statutory requirements and reject proposed arbitrary caps on indirect costs that threaten the future of biomedical research and innovation. Additionally, advocates will ask Congress to reappropriate recently rescinded funds for arthritis research at the Department of Defense in the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (CDMRP), funds that would provide at least $10 million to accelerate arthritis prevention strategies and treatment breakthroughs.
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) Reform
A longtime ACR priority, advocates will be asking Congress to support legislation that would make PBMs more transparent and accountable. First, advocates will urge Congress to “delink” PBM income from drug prices they negotiate in Medicare Advantage Part D plans. Advocates will also ask Congress to pass legislation to ban price spreading and require the Federal Trade Commission to complete a study on potentially abusive behaviors by PBMs.
