John Richardson, NSGC Senior Director of Policy and Government Relations
State licensure
Unprecedented progress is being made at the state level as genetic counselors and supporters are busy enacting licensure laws. In Montana, Governor Gianforte has signed their bill! In Maryland and Florida, legislation awaits a signature by their respective governors. In Oregon and Texas, legislation has moved out of one legislative body, and steady progress continues in Arizona, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin. Tremendous work by all of the committed genetic counselor advocates have made this progress possible.
Federal Advocacy: Senate Companion Bill Introduced
S. 1450, the “Access to Genetic Counselor Services Act,” has been introduced in the U.S. Senate. The bill is sponsored by U.S. Senators Jon Tester (D-Montana) and John Barrasso (R-Wyoming) and was developed by working closely with NSGC.
The bill would authorize the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to recognize certified genetic counselors as healthcare providers and would improve Medicare beneficiaries’ accessibility to genetic counselors. A companion bill, H.R. 2144 was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this year.
Visit https://www.nsgc.org/Policy-Research-and-Publications/Federal-Advocacy to read more and to request that your Senators sponsor the bill.
Virtual Call on Congress: May 24-27 Register Today!
On Monday, May 24 from 7-9pm EDT the week will begin with a live virtual kickoff webinar. Virtual meetings with members of Congress and Congressional staff will take place May 25-27. Registration is open!
The Virtual Call on Congress 2021 Kick-off webinar will include a briefing about the Access to Genetic Counselor Services Act and how the bill may affect your practice. You’ll hear from patient advocates on the importance of having your voice heard in Congress. Congressional champions will also provide their views on this important legislation. Finally, we will break into groups for mock Hill meetings so you can prepare for the experience first-hand and practice your talking points.
NSGC staff will schedule all of your Congressional meetings and will provide talking points and briefing documents ahead of your meetings.
Registration to for Virtual Call on Congress is free and open to all genetic counselors.
When registering, you will be asked to provide your availability over the dates May 25 to May 27, between 9:30am-4:00pm EST so that we can work with Congressional to schedule meetings with your Members of Congress.
Register Today: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Y9KLTS2
John Richardson, NSGC Senior Director of Policy and Government Relations