As a clinician treating cardiovascular patients, please contact your Member of Congress and ask them to support the “Increasing Access to Cardiac Rehabilitation Act of 2021.”
This bipartisan legislation would expand patient access to critical cardiovascular and pulmonary rehabilitation services (CR/PR) during a crucial time when treatments for medical conditions have been delayed or avoided during the COVID-19 pandemic.
There is no better time than immediately following Heart Month to advocate for policies that will help achieve the ACC's mission to transform cardiovascular care and improve heart health.
Each year, roughly 935,000 Americans will have a heart attack, and more than 30 percent will experience a secondary life-threatening cardiovascular event. Cardiac rehabilitation is a medically supervised program that includes exercise training, education on heart healthy living, and counseling. For patients with cardiovascular disease, these programs are proven to reduce the risk of a future cardiac event, reduce all-cause mortality by 25 percent, decrease hospitalizations and the use of medical resources, and improve health-related quality of life.
Ask Your Member to cosponsor the Increasing Access to Quality Cardiac Rehabilitation Care Act of 2021
This bill would:
- authorize physician assistants (PAs), nurse practitioners (NPs), and clinical nurse specialists (CNSs), referred to as advanced practice providers (APPs), to begin ordering and supervising patients’ day-to-day cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation care (CR/PR) in 2022. These providers are already able to supervise these services beginning in 2024 – this legislation moves that date up.
- eliminate obstacles, delays, and unnecessary paperwork that can prevent patients from beginning rehabilitation services that are needed on a timely basis.
- take important steps to increase access to critical cardiac rehabilitation services, particularly in rural and underserved communities.
Thank you for taking time to advocate for your patients and advance the ACC’s mission to transform cardiovascular care and improve heart health. Take Action Here.