May 1, 2008

Dear NHIA Member:

My first year as your executive director has truly been an exciting one. I am so pleased with all the progress that we have made working as a team to strengthen the association—and to better address the many challenging issues facing the alternate-site infusion field!

We are already hard at work developing the 2009 NHIA Annual Conference that will take place in Baltimore between March 1-4, 2009 (and possibly on March 5th too—see below), by the exciting Baltimore Inner Harbor. This location offers us a great legislative advocacy opportunity, but also a challenge—and we need your advice…

Some Background:

• As discussed at this year’s conference, NHIA is working on a carefully orchestrated two-year plan to push for a legislative solution to the Medicare infusion reimbursement challenge that infusion patients and providers face.
• We expect to have our legislation reintroduced early in 2009 with the 111th Congress—and member advocacy on Capitol Hill in 2009 will be crucial to legislative success.
• Our past legislative conference attendance has averaged about 100-125 people, which means that, at most, NHIA has had no more than that many people making Hill Day visits.

The Opportunity:

• With over 1,400 NHIA members in Baltimore—only 50 miles from the Nation’s Capital—we have a unique opportunity for a large number of our members to visit their Congressional representatives and advocate for this vital legislation.
• Instead of asking our members to go through the expense of making a separate trip to DC for a legislative conference (as we have done in previous years), we are asking each of you to consider making a commitment to stay an extra day while attending the 2009 Annual Conference—to push for the needed legislation that would profoundly benefit you and your Medicare patients.
• We would provide a social event and advocacy training the evening before, with complimentary buses taking you the next day from Baltimore to Capitol Hill—and then back again.
• Obviously, with over 1,400 people projected to be at the 2009 NHIA Annual Conference, we truly have a unique opportunity to produce a much larger turnout and impact on getting this critical legislation passed via a 2009 Hill Day initiative.

The Challenge:

• Here is our serious challenge as your association—we have a block of hotel rooms already reserved from March 1-4, 2009 that we must assume a high amount of financial obligation for.
• To have a successful Hill Day on March 5th (and to ensure that our members engaging in Hill visits would have the necessary hotel rooms for the evenings of March 4th and 5th), NHIA must further financially guarantee the additional rooms.
• Speaking frankly, since NHIA has never done anything like this previously, we do not know whether to guarantee 100 rooms or 300 rooms or even more.
• Reserving too few will make it very difficult for our members to stay over—and reserving too many will create a significant financial loss for the association that is beyond what we can reasonably risk.

The Collaborative Solution:

• I believe strongly that we are a collaborative Team of alternate-site infusion stakeholders—the association’s members, Board of Directors and staff.
• As part of that vital Team, I am asking that you help us in making the decision of whether or not we are in a realistic position to seize this opportunity and plan for such a major Hill Day legislative event.
• Thus, we need your timely feedback right away!

What You Can Do Immediately To Help:

• Regardless of your plans regarding the above 2009 Hill Day opportunity, please visit www.nhia.org/ac09hillday to complete the 2009 Hill Day Survey Form:

• Yes, I will attend: If you think you will indeed be able to commit now to participate in our important Hill Day event on March 5, 2009, kindly click the appropriate “I will attend” box on the survey.
• I may be able to attend: If you will try to attend, but do not feel you can definitively commit now to being there for the March 5, 2009 Hill Day, please click the appropriate “I may attend” box.
• No, I am unable to attend: If you think you are not able to attend click the appropriate “I am unable to attend” box.

Your honest and candid feedback is central to helping us make the best decision for the association, our collaborative legislative efforts and, ultimately, your company’s future success. We are delivering this message by e-mail, online at our website and via snail mail to ensure we reach every member.

Kindly respond only once—but please do make sure to respond. Shaping the future of our legislative impact may well hang in the balance!

Best regards,


Russ Bodoff
Executive Director