In The News
A Respiratory Therapist’s Plea: Why It’s Time to Pass the SOAR Act
By Nancy Colletti | April 23, 2026 As a practicing respiratory therapist for over 40 years and a clinical educator for the past 20 years, I have spent countless hours training patients how to manage their supplemental oxygen usage and devices. I’ve also been a caregiver to my father, who has been on medical oxygen…
Read MoreCQRC, INDUSTRY STAKEHOLDERS SEEK CLARIFICATIONS ON VENT POLICY
WASHINGTON, DC – The Council for Quality Respiratory Care (CQRC) joined stakeholder groups in sending a letter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) urgently calling for clarifying guidance for the continuing use criteria for both home mechanical ventilators (HMV) and respiratory assist devices (RAD) used by Medicare beneficiaries with chronic respiratory conditions. April 2026 is the month in…
Read MoreCQRC Sees Momentum on SOAR Act as Engagement Deepens
ORLANDO, Fla. – The Council for Quality Respiratory Care (CQRC) is confident that it can work with lawmakers and regulators on its top priorities for 2026, including passage of the SOAR Act, says Chair Robin Menchen, who is also president and CEO of Rotech Healthcare. SOAR Act gains traction The legislation, introduced in both the House of Representatives and the Senate in April 2025,…
Read MoreSupplemental oxygen patients need SOAR Act protections
You never think much about your ability to breathe until you can’t. For those of us needing medical assistance from supplemental oxygen, it’s always top of mind. And despite the urgency of need for oxygen users across the country, access to care is not always easy. Living with primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) – a disorder…
Read MoreCommentary: Individuals struggling for oxygen need Congress to step up
I have hiked dozens of 14,000-foot peaks and completed nearly 800 deep-sea dives, so I am not averse to a challenge. Now living with a chronic lung disease, I face my biggest challenge yet: accessing the most basic human necessity, oxygen. Shortly after moving to Newport in 2015, I noticed that hikes became more physically…
Read MoreCongress Must Work to Strengthen Medicare Access to Lifesaving Oxygen
When our son came home from the NICU, he used supplemental medical oxygen at home. My wife and I saw up close that the right oxygen, delivered the right way, doesn’t just help a child breathe—it lets a family breathe easier, too. That experience turned a policy debate into something personal. Nationwide, more than 1.5…
Read MoreSOAR Act: Help Those Who Struggle to Breathe
Living on the Space Coast, where sending rockets into orbit is a regular occurrence, you’d think innovation knows no bounds. If we can send people into space, surely, we can make the latest healthcare technologies available to patients struggling to breathe! Sadly, that is not the case for many patients in need of medical oxygen.…
Read MoreLung Patient Community Calls for Supplemental Oxygen Reform
Mary was diagnosed with a rare lung disease at 40 years old. Beverly loves playing tennis but struggles to do so with an oxygen tank. Sarah’s active lifestyle depends on access to liquid oxygen so that she can leave the house for more than a few hours. These stories are similar to many more shared on Capitol Hill for the American…
Read MoreCQRC OFFERS UP SOAR ACT AS WAY TO SUPPORT ACCESS TO NEW TECH
The Council for Quality Respiratory Care (CQRC) shared a letter with the House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee in advance of its hearing “Examining Policies to Enhance Seniors’ Access to Breakthrough Medical Technologies” to promote its SOAR Act. In the letter, the CQRC makes the case that the Supplemental Oxygen Access Reform (SOAR) Act (S. 1406/H.R. 2902) would: “Earlier…
Read MoreSOAR Act Would Help Individuals Relying on Oxygen Thrive
For many, going to the grocery store, stopping by the post office, or attending a college class barely requires a second thought. But for patients like me who rely on supplemental oxygen, these activities require careful consideration about how many tanks of oxygen I’ll need to bring and whether I can make it back home…
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