From ASIPP:
December 11, 2013
Dear Ligament:
We sent you a letter yesterday along with a fact sheet which can be found at the top of this letter and on the ASIPP homepage, however, today we wanted to talk to you about how to successfully lobby on this issue.
ASIPP has a Capwiz account for our members because it is the most efficient and effective way to send the letters.
Please don't stop at sending your own letter, or even 2 or 3 other letters. Each physician should make a conscious effort and send minimum of 500 and as many as 2,000 per physician. Obviously this will mean if there are 10 people in your group minimum will be 5,000, and may be able to send as many as 20,000 or so. It is extremely important that we send as many letters as possible. Here is the process:
Computerized Signatures:
The traditional way is to divide the patients into the state and congressional district in which they live. Following this you put one letter for each congressional district and state. This letter will be addressed to CMS, congressman, and both the senators.
If you have patients from 4 states, you need to have 4 different types of letters based on their congressional offices. If your patients come from 10 congressional offices, you will have 10 different letters.
Click here for an example for the KY 1st District letter.
Show the patient this letter and if they are willing to sign make sure they provide their address, phone number, e-mail, etc. as we have shown in the example letter above.
Preferably that same day one of your staff members will enter all the names along with the addresses using the patient letter Capwiz link. This will produce a customized letter to CMS, the member of the congress, and to both senators as one letter. If you have personnel onsite to do this, this is the best approach. You can ask the patients, their attendants, staff, and each and every one to sign on to the computer itself.
You should keep the addresses, etc. of the person who is signing the letter and after making a copy to keep, mail one to each addressee. Again, this may not reach the authorities on time and no action may be taken. However, if this is the only way you can do this. As the saying goes, doing something is better than doing nothing. We will always be ahead of the one who is doing nothing at all.
Let us get to work. We will be monitoring the number of letters going. All the letters going through ASIPP website will be known to us; however, if you send them outside we will not know about them. You may want to send us a copy of those letters.
Capwiz Link for Pysician Letters
Word Version for Physician Letters
Capwiz Link for Patient Letters
Word Version for Patient Letters
Fact Sheet
Fee Schedules
Save IPM Fund
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Melinda Martin,
[email protected], 270-554-9412, ext. 215 or Summer Moffitt,
[email protected], 270-554-9412, ext. 204.
Thank you,
Hans C. Hansen, MD
President, ASIPP
Medical Director
The Pain Relief Centers, LLC
224 Commerce St
Conover, NC 28613
Phone: (828) 261-0467
Fax: (828) 261-7293
[email protected]
Laxmaiah Manchikanti, MD
Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, ASIPP
Medical Director, Pain Management Center of Paducah
Clinical Professor, Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine
University of Louisville, Kentucky
2831 Lone Oak Road
Paducah, KY 42003
Phone: 270-554-8373 ext. 101
Fax: 270-554-8987
[email protected]