Rep David B. McKinley (R-WVa)
Rep David B. McKinley, PE (R-WVa) applauded the recent decision made by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to drop a proposed rule that would have eliminated Medicare coverage for several types of hearing devices. The reversal by CMS will help ensure hearing impaired people continue to have access to the care they need.
“As someone with a hearing impairment and an advocate for people who face similar challenges, I was pleased to learn on Friday that CMS saw the error in their proposed rule,” said McKinley in a press release. “This is an issue that is personal to me as a hearing-impaired American with a cochlear implant and a grandfather of a child with an osseointegrated hearing device.”
The CMS rule would have eliminated longstanding Medicare coverage for osseointegrated “prosthetic” implants such as the Cochlear Baha® System. More than 360 million people live with disabling hearing loss. For some of these patients, a prescribed, surgically implanted solution is the only effective treatment.
McKinley actively fought the proposed rule and worked with advocates for the hearing impaired to urge CMS to reverse its decision. In August, Rep. McKinley returned to Washington to meet with officials from CMS to discuss the importance of the system for patients. He also joined several of his colleagues in the House to send letters to CMS urging them to reverse the proposed rule.
Source: Legislative Director for Congressman David B. McKinley, PE (WV-1)
