The Heart Valve Disease Policy Task Force is a coalition of like-minded organizations formed in mid-2018 under the leadership of the Alliance for Aging Research. The Task Force was designed to provide a mechanism for manufacturers to share information and discuss policy priorities with advocacy organizations interested in heart valve disease issues.
The focus of the Task Force has been around CMS NCD policies for aortic valve replacement (TAVR) and mitral valve repair (TEER/TMVR), as well as shared decision making. More recently, the task force has weighed in on Medicare Coverage of Innovative Technology (MCIT). The Task Force is committed to expanding access to screening, diagnosis and treatment for structural heart patients.
Heart Valve Voice US assumed leadership of the Task Force in 2021, a transition that had been envisioned once the organization was more established and had developed a policy infrastructure. Moving forward, the task force will address structural heart issues beyond heart valves.
In addition to the important and ongoing work supporting NCDs for innovative heart valve technologies, we believe there is an opportunity to become more actively involved in additional policy areas, such as:
- Efforts to enhance screening programs;
- Efforts to clarify and codify Coverage with Evidence Development (CED);
- Registries;
- Evolution of Medicare Coverage of Innovative Technology (MCIT);
- Telehealth;
- Digital Health;
- FDA issues, including clinical trial innovations, Diversity, and approval pathways;
- Private insurance coverage and reimbursement issues.
Additionally, we see an opportunity to broaden the Task Force to incorporate other viewpoints and build a stronger, more effective advocacy coalition by engaging medical societies such as: Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS); American College of Cardiology (ACC); Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Intervention (SCAI); and others.
The plan for the Task Force moving forward is to hold regularly scheduled calls and, when the environment allows, schedule in-person meetings and briefings. Heart Valve Voice US plans to engage Holland & Knight, with whom we worked closely since 2020, to support policy development and advocacy strategy for the Task Force.
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