Emergency physician-supported solutions to some of the biggest challenges in health care are gaining steam in Washington, D.C.

In December, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced it would convene stakeholders to address boarding concerns through the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). ACEP conversations continue with teh AHRQ.

ACEP helped make this possible by mobilizing Congress to request HHS action during last year’s Leadership and Advocacy Conference, where emergency physicians from across the country gathered in D.C. to share their concerns directly with elected officials. ACEP advocates helped secure 44 signatories on a congressional “Dear Colleague” letter to the Administration, asking them to establish a task force on the boarding crisis.

The College is pushing for federal actions that align with input from the first National Stakeholder Summit on Boarding, which ACEP organized and hosted in September 2023.

In addition to boarding measures, ACEP strongly supports legislation to improve protections for the health and safety of emergency physicians on the job.

ACEP and the American Hospital Association co-hosted a congressional briefing Jan. 30 to discuss violence in the emergency department and encourage elected officials to pass the SAVE Act, bipartisan legislation that ACEP helped develop and strongly supports to protect physicians and health care professionals in the workplace.

This bill would make assaulting a health care worker a federal crime and create grants to empower emergency departments to enact solutions that work best for their community, while ensuring critical protections for patients in mental health crisis or who may be limited in capacity.

Advocate for Yourself and Your Patients at LAC24

Given all the challenges emergency physicians face, being able to share those experiences and how you are feeling is important. ACEP’s Leadership & Advocacy Conference (LAC), April 14–16 in Washington, DC, will remind you that you’re not alone in fighting to improve our professional lives and patient care.

Together at LAC, we’ll:

• Meet in person with your Members of Congress,
• Tackle problems facing emergency medicine, such as the current boarding crisis, and
• Develop tools to advocate at all levels.

Seasoned participants will build upon their already-valuable connections. First-timers will be trained on effective ways to educate your Members of Congress.

There’s still time to register—celebrate emergency medicine’s accomplishments and advocate in person to policymakers for a better environment for your specialty and your patients.