Pappas, Shaheen trying to make it easier for veterans to receive acupuncture

LACONIA — Rep. Chris Pappas and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen say they are working to make it easier for veterans to receive acupuncture treatment.

Kathy Twombly of Gate of Life Acupuncture and Wellness has a thriving Main Street practice offering this treatment to veterans and others as a way to help alleviate pain and stress without the need for medication.

She said the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is sometimes slow in making payment for services or in authorizing treatment.

Pappas, D-New Hampshire, has drafted a letter to Richard Stone, the executive in charge of the Veterans Health Administration asking for answers regarding the issue.

Pappas said he is also planning to use his role as chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on the House Veterans Affairs Committee to explore what more can be done to make sure providers get paid and don’t have to interrupt care to veterans.

“A lot of these small providers deal with bureaucratic issues when they deal with the VA,” said Pappas, who met last week with Twombly and some of her patients. “Some aren’t able to make it through because they have outstanding invoices that are six months or longer that they are trying to get paid.”

He said he’s planning a hearing next month on his subcommittee to address these billing issues.

“There are a lot of providers who frankly won’t do business with the VA,” he said.

Some small providers have tens of thousands of dollars in outstanding invoices with the VA, Pappas said.

“I’ve talked to hospitals that have millions of dollars of outstanding invoices with the VA,” he said. “You could see how that would prohibit someone from being able to take these patients at all, which is taking us in the wrong direction.”

Shaheen has introduced the Acupuncture for our Heroes Act to expand access to acupuncturist services.

She said a report by the Veterans Health Administration indicates 80 percent of VA providers identified acupuncture as one of the top three services most often requested by veterans.

Currently, only 60 percent of VA health centers provide often limited acupuncture services on site, and 14 percent do not provide acupuncture services at all, she said.

“We need to make sure alternatives to opioids are being made available when it comes to pain treatment, particularly for our veterans, many of whom suffer from chronic pain because of their service,” said Shaheen.

“This bill would make sure veterans have increased access to this treatment option, and avoid the risks associated with opioid painkillers. This is a common sense proposal that improves the health care options available to our heroes who put everything on the line to defend our country.”

The bill was introduced in November and has been referred to the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.