Occupational Therapist Takes Her Passion for Her Patients to Capitol Hill

6/13/2024

Merit Health Natchez Therapist Lobbies Successfully for The Lymphedema Treatment Act

NATCHEZ, MS – June 12, 2024 -- National Occupational Therapy Month was recently celebrated. There is no better time to tell the story of how one occupational therapist from a small town in Mississippi impacted the signing of a federal law in January 2024 that would help nearly three million lymphedema patients on Medicare receive needed supplies to help them with their painful, incurable swelling.

Naydza Muhammad, an occupational therapist and certified lymphedema therapist at Merit Health Natchez, has treated hundreds of lymphedema patients through the years. Lymphedema is chronic swelling (edema) caused by a buildup of fluid (lymph) that occurs when the lymphatic system is either faulty or damaged. There is no cure for lymphedema, but it can be effectively treated.

Part of the treatment for managing lymphedema requires bandages and compression garments. Naydza began hearing from her patients how expensive these medical supplies were, and many of her patients were having to manage their lymphedema without them. This created unnecessary pain and discomfort for her patients, and she was determined to find a way to help them.

After doing some research and speaking with various suppliers of these much needed bandages and compression garments, Nayzda was surprised to learn that Medicare did not cover these items. Naydza took to her computer for more research to find other individuals and/or organizations that shared her surprise and concern over the lack of coverage for these necessary medical supplies. It was then, around 2014, she discovered the Lymphedema Advocacy Group.

The Lymphedema Advocacy Group (LAG) is an all-volunteer organization of patients, caregivers, healthcare professionals and industry partners. Their mission is to advance lymphedema care in the United States by advocating for improved access to care for the diagnosis and treatment of the disease. Members work to increase awareness of and education about lymphedema amongst law makers, federal and state agencies, insurance providers, clinicians, and other relevant entities. LAG supports attempts to improve insurance coverage through both state and federal legislation, as well as though regulatory action and policy decisions, and encourage all members of the lymphedema community to become active participants in this process.

Naydza had found a support system through LAG. Now it was just a matter of stepping out of her comfort zone. Self-described as apolitical, Naydza knew she had a lot to learn, beginning with learning the names and contacts of her US representatives and congressmen. Each evening, after Naydza left her full time job at the hospital, she poured herself into the education and resources the Lymphedema Advocacy Group afforded her.

She read LAGs materials, handbook and watched webinars on how to successfully lobby to have a bill introduced and how to see it through until it is passed into law. This knowledge and research gave her a sense of empowerment, and she was one hundred percent onboard with working with LAG to lobby for legislation that would improve insurance coverage for the medically necessary, doctor-prescribed compression supplies that her, as well as millions more in the United States, needed.

Naydza’s first appointment to discuss the Lymphedema Treatment Act was in October 2014 with one of then Mississippi Representative Gregg Harper’s staff members. The meeting bore fruit and Congressman Harper actually co-sponsored the bill! From there, again on her own time and expense, Naydza would regularly attend lobby days in Washington, DC, meeting sometimes one-on-one with congressmen and senators to help push through the Lymphedema Treatment Act.

Naydza’s diligence, follow-through and dedication to this cause caught the attention of the founder and executive director of the Lymphedema Advocacy Group, Heather Ferguson. In 2019, Naydza was appointed to the board of directors of LAG, one of 18 members throughout the United States. According to LAG, The Lymphedema Treatment Act was first introduced into Congress in 2010, and each consecutive Congress their bill has garnered more support. With teams in all 50 states advocating for the bill and working tirelessly through the years, including Naydza, the only representative from Mississippi, their efforts paid off.

On December 23, 2022, the Lymphedema Treatment Act (LTA) was passed as a federal law and went into effect on January 1, 2024. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) implemented a rule, made possible by the passing of this act, allowing Medicare Part B coverage of doctor-prescribed compression garments, the clinically recognized treatment for lymphedema.

Naydza is truly an example of a grassroots effort that began with a desire to find her patients a way to afford the much needed compression garments and bandages that are key to controlling pain and infections in the treatment against their chronic swelling.

Naydza continues to quietly and unassumingly go about her much loved profession of being an occupational therapist at Merit Health Natchez. She is truly loved by her patients and co-workers and brushes off any notion of how huge her accomplishments and the impact she has on her patients’ lives. All of the time, effort, personal expense, and years of not giving up hope were long forgotten when she was able to treat her first patient who directly benefitted from the passage of the Lymphedema Treatment Act in 2024. Her patient marveled at the difference the medical supplies made in her comfort level. Little did she know the road her therapist had traveled to make that happen.

Merit Health Natchez offers a free e-newsletter with a monthly dose of health and wellness inspiration sent directly to your inbox from a trusted medical source. You can sign up at https://www.merithealthnatchez.com/enewsletter-sign-up.

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