BOOM!!!!: R.E.A.C.H. Advocacy Finds its Mark as New CMS Rule Omits TPMO Requirements!– At Least For Now

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Well you read about it first here on TCPAWorld.

Just moments ago Queenie delivered the news that CMS has provided its final 2024 rule and–guess what– the CRITICAL proposal to ban TPMOs from sharing beneficiary information with one another was NOT included in the new rule. (At least not yet anyway.)

BOOYAH.

You will recall that R.E.A.C.H. took action to prevent the TPMO ruling from advancing, while it supported other parts of the bill.

The R.E.A.C.H. comment–widely regarded as powerful, direct and impactful–was submitted amidst a chorus of other voices suggesting the proposal would go to far.

MUST READ: R.E.A.C.H. Comment Opposing CMS’ Proposed Rule– “The End of How Many Family Businesses?”

As R.E.A.C.H. wrote on the subject:

Adopting a rule that prevents TPMOs from working with each other, assures that all of the small players are dead. They cannot offer services to beneficiaries when they have no connection to any company that can assist those beneficiaries directly. So the small companies cease operation.

And a business is not just a place where people work. It is a dream that someone turned into reality. Every business takes investment of time, money, and self. No government entity or regulator should carelessly end such a dream or lay such investment to waste without compelling reason—especially where, as here, it is being done without any form of due process.

The companies to be put out of business have not been found to have engaged in illegal activity. Yet, it seems, CMS has found all guilty by association. Because some in their midst have sinned, a collective death penalty is to be issued.

R.E.A.C.H. urges CMS to recognize the impact of its Rule and course correct. There is a better way.

For now, at least, these comments appear to have found their mark. As Queenie just reported:

“We are not addressing our proposal to prohibit TPMOs from distributing beneficiary contact information in this final rule and may address it in a future final rule

So the TPMO piece may or may not be dead, but it is currently on ICE.

Too early for a complete victory lap, but definitely time to take stock of the great work of the R.E.A.C.H. board and the fantastic advocacy of the Countess and Queenie–who carried the torch for the industry on this one.

But there is much more work to be done. The FCC’s NPRM proceeding is still on going. Obviously R.E.A.C.H. is here for it.

PLEASE look to do YOUR part here–join the POWERFUL and COMPLIANT brands that form R.E.A.C.H. and count yourself among the RESPONSIBLE enterprises fighting against consumer abuse AND governmental overreach.

contact jenniffer@troutmanfirm.com for information!

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Published by Eric J. Troutman

The Czar of TCPAWorld Eric Troutman is one of the country’s prominent class action defense lawyers and is nationally recognized in Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) litigation and compliance. He has served as lead defense counsel in more than 70 national TCPA class actions and has litigated nearly a thousand individual TCPA cases in his role as national strategic litigation counsel for major banks and finance companies. He also helps industry participants build TCPA-compliant processes, policies, and systems. Eric has built a national litigation practice based upon deep experience, rigorous analysis and extraordinary responsiveness. Eric and his team feel equally at home litigating multibillion dollar telecommunications class actions in federal court as they do developing and executing national litigation strategies for institutions facing an onslaught of individual TCPA matters. They thrive in each of these roles – delivering consistently excellent results – while never losing sight of the client experience. While many firms now tout TCPA expertise, Eric has been there from the beginning. He built one of the country’s first TCPA-only defense teams and began serving as national TCPA counsel for his clients nearly a decade ago. This perspective allows him to swiftly develop the right litigation strategies for dealing with recurring problems, without wasting time on tactics that are bound to fail. Eric’s rich historical perspective and encyclopedic knowledge of the TCPA landscape also make him an invaluable resource to institutional compliance teams struggling to comply with the shifting regulatory landscape. No task is too small – or too big. Indeed, Eric and his team have helped build TCPA-compliant systems and processes for some of the largest and most complex corporate entities in the country. He commonly works with in-house compliance counsel to build and implement enterprise and business-line specific TCPA solutions, performs TCPA audits and drafts and reviews proposed TCPA policies and procedures. He and his team also have the technical expertise necessary to assist call centers seeking to develop TCPA-resistant call path architecture or to modify existing telephony and software integration to better insulate from potential TCPA exposure. Eric has built a reputation for thought leadership. An avid blogger and speaker, he has been at the forefront of the industry’s effort to push for clarity and a return to sanity for the TCPA for years. He was selected to advocate for the financial services industry on important TCPA issues before the Federal Communications Commission and co-authored the nation’s only comprehensive practice guide on TCPA defense. In his spare time, Eric leads defense teams representing banks and other financial services companies in consumer finance litigation matters. He has experience representing clients in UCC, TILA, RESPA FCRA, CCRA, CLRA, FDCPA, RFDCPA and FCCPA claims, as well as in fraud and bank operations issues.

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