On June 15th & 16st I joined 48 other diabetes educators in Washington, DC at the AADE Advocacy 2015 Public Policy Forum. Our sessions included one day of training and going to Capitol Hill the next day. The training that we received was great. When we went to Capitol Hill with a mission and they equipped us to present our case with confidence. This was my second visit going to Capitol Hill to meet legislators’ representatives and/or possibly the legislators, which was a little more comfortable this time around. It was great meeting educators from other states and also our AADE leadership team. I also got to meet our AADE President-elect, Hope Warshaw.
Hope Warshaw, AADE President-Elect
Former U.S. Senator Tom Daschle spoke to the group on the first day and Congressman Tom Reed (R-NY) spoke at our breakfast meeting before we went to Capitol Hill. Congressman Reed was recognized as the 2015 AADE Legislative Champion. He spoke of his experience as an over weigh person with diabetes, after gastric bypass surgery his diabetes is under control. The opportunity also presented itself to meet our new Director of Federal and State Advocacy leader, Kurt Anderson. He was great and let us knows that he would keep us up to date with what’s going on in Washington.
Congressman Tom Reed (R-NY) 2015 AADE Legislative Champion
In the US there are 26 million people with diabetes and SC is ranked fourth in the nation. In SC there were over 416,000 people with diabetes in 2011 which make our cause even more critical. The current bills in the House and Senate are H. R. 1726 and S. 1345, respectively; the Access to Quality Diabetes Education Act of 2015. If passed, credentialed diabetes educators would be recognized as Medicare providers for outpatient Diabetes Self-Management Training (DSMT). The average Medicare cost savings per month/per patient is $135 for those beneficiaries who complete DSMT. Evidence supports the effectiveness of self management training in people with type 2 diabetes.
What can you do to help?
- Contact your Congressman regarding H. R. 1726 Access to Quality Diabetes Education Act of 2015.
- Contact your Senator regarding S. 1345 Access to Quality Diabetes Education Act of 2015.
- Visit your AADE Advocacy page to view current bills and contact your Representatives regarding them by phone, letter, or email. The advocacy page has been updated and makes it easy for you to send a letter via email to your Congressman/woman and Senator.
We need to fight for better access for our patients. Our representatives want to hear what is important to us, our voices count and need to be heard. Remember, they work for us and only become involved when they hear that many others in their community are concerned about an issue. If your passion is for diabetes, each time a bill is presented and let your voice be known. I believe that we accomplished what we aimed to accomplish on Capitol Hill on June 16st. I reiterate if you have not contacted your Congressman and/or Senator do it today and ask them to co-sponsor H. R. 1726 and S. 1345, respectively.
AADE President Deborah Greenwood and AADE Corporate Secretary/CEO Charles Macfarlane