National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization: Hospice Action Network Virtual Advocacy Day

ALEXANDRIA, Virginia, March 26 -- The National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization issued the following news release:

The Hospice Action Network will hold its virtual advocacy day on Tuesday March 24, 2020. However, hospice and palliative care advocates should note that the virtual Call to Action will extend through Friday, March 27.

Advocates will reach out to their Congressional representatives to request assistance with two important Coronavirus (COVID-19) issues in the hospice community. First, hospices are suffering from a severe lack of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that would allow us to continue to serve patients while reducing risk of exposure to COVID-19 to patients, their caregivers, and the public.

The call will ask Congress to increase the available funding for PPE and ensure that hospices are priority recipients when the state governors work with FEMA to distribute PPE to essential healthcare providers.

Additionally, hospice was excluded from President Trump's National Emergency declaration granting Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar authority under Section 1135 of the Social Security Act on March 13, 2020. This means that hospice providers, who care for the nation's most vulnerable patients, experiencing serious and life-threatening illness, face additional barriers to providing care in the private home and other healthcare settings.

"Our patients are the most vulnerable Americans, and they do not deserve to be abandoned for lack of available safety measures," said NHPCO and HAN President and CEO Edo Banach.

The Hospice Action Network, and affiliate organization of NHPCO, makes it easy for advocates and supporters to make their voice heard via the virtual online HAN Legislative Action Center.

Take action - if not today, by Friday, March 27.