Cara C. Bachenheimer

Contact Cara C. Bachenheimer

Cara C. Bachenheimer is the Head of the Government Affairs Practice of Brown & Fortunato, where she is a shareholder. The Government Affairs practice is based in D.C. and represents healthcare manufacturers, HME suppliers, pharmacies, infusion companies, home health agencies, hospitals, and other healthcare providers throughout the United States.

Well respected in the home medical equipment and complex rehab technology industries, Cara is an attorney, lobbyist and trusted resource on legislative and regulatory matters related to Medicare, Medicaid, and other third-party payment programs. For 30 years, she has been working on behalf of the industry and companies with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and other federal agencies.

Cara has also been directly involved with developing federal legislative initiatives designed to ensure access to HME and CRT technologies, lobbying Congress, running political action committees (PACs), managing national coalitions, testifying before federal regulatory agencies and Congress, and working closely with federal agencies that impact consumers and businesses.

Cara has held multiple leadership positions in industry associations such as the American Association for Homecare (AAH), the National Coalition for Assistive & Rehab Technology (NCART), and the Health Industry Distributors Association (HIDA), as well as with national consumer organizations such as United Spinal Association and Paralyzed Veterans of America. Her award highlights include “Home Care Champion” by the American Association for Homecare, the “Home Care Caring” award by Home Care Magazine and HME News’ “Top 10 Most Influential People in the Industry.”

Cara’s expertise includes:

• Developing and implementing strategies for Congress and federal agencies, including CMS), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA);
• Developing and maintaining long-term relationships with key Members of Congress and Congressional staff, lobbying Congress on behalf of HEM and CRT stakeholders;  
• Drafting federal legislative language, Position Papers, impact analyses and other advocacy documents;
• Drafting analyses of federal and state bills, laws and regulations impacting company and industry, and formal comments for federal regulatory agencies;
• Managing coding, coverage and payment issues and initiatives with Medicare;  
• Assessing new and ongoing market initiatives for compliance with Medicare, Medicaid, HIPPA and other laws and regulations;
• Monitoring and reviewing federal and state legislation and regulations potentially impacting HME and CRT stakeholders;
• Drafting all types of communications for companies, including comments and testimony for federal agencies, external customer communications and internal updates on federal policy issues;  
• Managing political actions committees, including internal contributions and fundraising for federal candidates;
• Drafting and presenting testimony before federal regulatory agencies and Congress;
• Representation in national industry associations and their leadership committees and Boards; and
• Working with national consumer, clinical and other stakeholder organizations to align interests and build support for federal policy objectives.

Cara is a frequent speaker at national, regional and state meetings and conferences, and often writes articles for industry publications such as HME News and Home Care Magazine.

Cara and her husband Neal are the parents of two children.