ACEP to Congress: Reject Medicaid Changes That Would Leave Millions Uninsured

ACEP recently issued a statement to voice concern that drastic changes to Medicaid under consideration will disproportionately affect emergency departments already under significant strain, leaving emergency physicians with fewer resources to respond to patient needs, and threatening patient access to lifesaving emergency care. ACEP recently joined 42 national medical organizations in a letter opposing these proposed Medicaid changes. College leadership looks forward to continuing to work with the Senate to ensure that policy changes do not place undue burdens on already-strained emergency departments or establish barriers to lifesaving emergency care for patients.

“Emergency departments are one of the few settings where patients are treated 24/7/365, regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay,” said ACEP President Alison J. Haddock, MD, FACEP. “The impact of policies that will leave millions of people without any health coverage falls squarely onto emergency physicians and patients. Patients with unmet health care needs will delay treatment and their conditions will worsen, leaving them with no other option than the emergency department. This creates avoidable health risks and threatens the viability of an already strained health care safety net.”

Under the provisions passed by the House of Representatives, the Congressional Budget Office projects an additional 7.6 million people will go without any health coverage, resulting in an additional $5.5 billion in losses for emergency physician payments. And these numbers could increase substantially due to changes made just before the bill was passed. As vulnerable and underserved patients face increased barriers to primary care and other necessary services, emergency physicians will see an influx of patients with more severe illnesses and conditions in emergency departments that are already near, or even beyond, their breaking point.

“The very idea of emergency medicine as we now know it—lifesaving care available for anyone at any time—is under direct threat from these proposed policy changes,” Dr. Haddock said.

ACEP Advocacy Leads to New Boarding Legislation

A new ACEP-developed bipartisan bill to address the boarding crisis has been introduced in the House of Representatives, with a Senate companion soon to follow. This important legislation is a direct result of ACEP advocacy and the latest in a series of major ACEP initiatives to address the boarding crisis. Advocating for the Addressing Boarding and Crowding in the ED (ABC-ED) Act was a central part of this year’s Leadership and Advocacy Conference (LAC).

Now is the time to build off the LAC momentum and call for the prompt passage of this bill into law. Urge your legislator to Support the ABC-ED Act.

“Boarding in the emergency department is a national public health crisis that puts patient lives at risk and strains emergency physicians and care teams every day,” ACEP President Alison J. Haddock, MD, FACEP, said.

This bill:

• Uses public health data modernization grants to support development and implementation of real-time, state- or region-wide hospital bed tracking and hospital capacity management systems with a focus on addressing boarding.
• Supports innovative care models through Medicare pilot programs—focused on improving geriatric emergency care and psychiatric emergency care, increasing bilateral communication, and improving coordinated care.
• Commissions a Government Accountability Office study to identify best practices for hospital capacity tracking and its effect on boarding, wait times, and EMS offload delays.

ACEP-Supported Legislation Would Bring Fairness, Due Process to Physicians

Protecting clinical autonomy empowers emergency physicians to always be able to put patients first.

That is why ACEP continues to fight for the bipartisan, bicameral Physician and Patient Safety Act to guarantee due process rights for all physicians, ensuring that no physicians are unjustly silenced by their employer when they see a need to advocate for patient safety. This legislation addresses a major ACEP concern and member priority—due process rights are not currently guaranteed to physicians who are not directly employed by hospitals.

“Growing threats to physician autonomy are one of the most significant stressors facing emergency physicians today, and a lack of due process protections is a significant part of the problem,” said ACEP President Alison J. Haddock, MD, FACEP. “These essential protections ensure fairness and allow emergency physicians to fully advocate for our patients without fear of retaliation or termination.”

The Physician and Patient Safety Act is an essential, commonsense, and straightforward effort that guarantees due process and ensures that emergency physicians have the same rights on the job as other physicians in the hospital. ACEP thanks Senators Roger Marshall, MD, (R-KS) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Representatives Raul Ruiz, MD, (D-CA) and John Joyce, MD, (R-PA) for their continued leadership on this important legislation.

Register for ACEP25 by July 31. Get ACEP Anytime Free!

Join your emergency medicine family in Salt Lake City. Surround yourself with those who know you best, absorb practice-changing education, and relentlessly pursue excellence. ACEP is making the conference even more appealing by offering you access to ACEP Anytime— free—if you complete a four-day registration by July 31. Your time is valuable. Get up-to-date information from a library of videos, slides, podcasts, and publications from ACEP’s biggest events and collections. Even better, get $100 off when you register by July 31 with promo code Climbing.

ACEP recently announced an addition to ACEP25. “The Pitt” is coming to Salt Lake City. Actor Noah Wyle, along with writer and producer Joseph Sachs, MD, FACEP, and medical advisor Mel Herbert, MD, FACEP, are delivering an exclusive panel discussion, moderated by incoming ACEP President L. Anthony Cirillo, MD, FACEP. Discover how they capture the chaos, intensity, and humanity of the emergency department with stunning realism, and why the show has deeply resonated with emergency physicians across the country.

The exciting back-to-back session lineup kicks off ACEP25 Opening Day and features Olympic Gold medalist figure skater Scott Hamilton, who will deliver “I’m a Healer” – Finding Strength and Purpose Amidst Challenges.”  Hamilton will share his inspiring journey of resilience—from childhood illness to cancer battles—offering a powerful message of perseverance, hope, and turning obstacles into opportunities. Emergency physicians don’t just treat patients—they restore hope, navigate chaos, and heal beyond the physical. “I’m a Healer” celebrates the resilience, compassion, and unwavering dedication that defines emergency medicine.

ACEP Launches New Online Community

In early June, ACEP launched a new way to connect with your ACEP colleagues and the emergency medicine community. It’s the new engagED, your upgraded digital home to connect, collaborate, and thrive. This reimagined space was designed with you in mind. With the new engagED, you can:

• Find trusted resources shared by fellow emergency physicians.
• Get answers to questions about the business or practice of emergency medicine.
• Join conversations about hot topics, current events, or personal interests.
• Reconnect with your sections, member interest groups (MIGs), and other ACEP groups.
• Ask questions directly to ACEP leaders and staff.

We hope you like the new engagED and would love your feedback.

Virtual Reality with Classical Music Eases Tension-Type Headache

A study in the June 2025 issue of Annals of Emergency Medicine looked at 140 patients with tension-type headache and determined that a combination of virtual reality and classical music effectively managed pain and improved mood in these patients. The study suggested that this approach may reduce medication use and offered an innovative alternative for tension-type headache management, consistent with similar studies in literature.

Tension-type headache is the most common primary headache worldwide, significantly reducing individuals’ quality of life, according to the study. Although nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are commonly used for the pharmacologic treatment of tension-type headache, complementary and alternative treatment methods are gaining increasing importance. In this context, virtual reality technology stands out as a noninvasive option, particularly in pain management. This study investigated the analgesic effects and acute mood changes associated with virtual reality and classical music therapy in patients with tension-type headache.

Lead author Safa Dönmez, MD, and fellow researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial that involved 140 patients diagnosed with tension-type headache, divided into two groups. The control group received intravenous 25-mg dexketoprofen trometamol, whereas the intervention group was provided with virtual reality goggles to listen to classical music in a simulated forest environment in addition to this treatment. Pain intensity was assessed using the visual analog scale (VAS); mood changes were measured using a five-choice ordinal rating scale.

The findings suggested that the combination of virtual reality and classical music effectively managed pain and improved mood in tension-type headache patients.

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ACEP Reaffirms Emergency Physicians’ Duty to Uphold EMTALA, Provide Stabilizing Care in Emergencies

In response to this month’s rescission of the July 2022 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) guidance on the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) and pregnant patients, ACEP reiterated its unwavering commitment to the principles and obligations outlined in this longstanding federal law. For almost 40 years, EMTALA has served as the bedrock guarantee that anyone who seeks emergency care will receive stabilizing treatment, regardless of insurance status, ability to pay, or other circumstances. Regardless of variances in the regulatory landscape from one administration to another, emergency physicians remain committed not just by law, but by their professional oath, to provide this care.

“Emergency physicians are on the frontlines making difficult, time-sensitive decisions to save lives,” said ACEP President Alison Haddock, MD, FACEP. “EMTALA ensures that we can provide stabilizing care to any patient who needs it, including pregnant patients experiencing medical emergencies, and it’s more important than ever that we have its backing for our evidence-based medical decisions.”

ACEP urges policymakers and federal officials to continue to uphold and enforce EMTALA in a manner that protects patients and supports the clinical judgment and autonomy of emergency physicians.

“In every emergency department across the country, we will continue to do what we have always done: Provide the care necessary to stabilize our patients,” said Dr. Haddock. “That commitment is not optional—it is the law. All emergency physicians must be able to provide the highest quality medical care to pregnant patients without fear of legal consequences.”

Limiting Access to Vaccines Creates Avoidable Health Risks

ACEP issued a statement last week related to the scaling back of definitive recommendations for COVID-19 vaccines and decisions to curtail the federal role in funding and developing new vaccines and countermeasures for emerging infectious diseases. Emergency physicians—who stand on the frontlines of every major public health emergency—are alarmed that these changes could leave health care workers and their patients vulnerable. Ensuring early and sustained access to vaccines is essential to protect those most likely to face and contain outbreaks, such as those in emergency departments, which already operate under significant strain.

The abrupt narrowing of vaccine recommendations could jeopardize current patient safety and weaken our collective preparedness for future threats.

Federal policies should encourage patients to make educated decisions to receive safe and effective vaccines, and ACEP supports the freedom of every patient, especially those who are pregnant, to make informed and evidence-based choices on vaccination in consultation with their physician. However, patients are denied that choice if access is prevented, supplies become limited, or development of new countermeasures is frozen altogether.

Further, absent a federal recommendation, insurance companies may not cover certain vaccinations, which will only exacerbate cost and access challenges for millions of people.

Emergency physicians strongly urge U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and other federal agencies to maintain and bolster our nation’s world-class evidence-based public health practices, including robust vaccine research, development, and distribution strategies that meet the needs of a changing threat landscape. ACEP supports ongoing funding for vaccines and clear guidance that holds insurance companies accountable for covering vaccinations at no cost to patients and health care workers.

“Frontline physicians must be protected in order to protect the public. Impeding access to vaccines – whether for COVID or emerging viruses – compromises our ability to respond and care for those in need,” said ACEP President Alison J. Haddock, MD, FACEP.

New South Carolina Law Requires Physician Onsite in All Hospital EDs

South Carolina recently passed legislation requiring all hospitals with emergency departments (EDs) to have at least one physician physically onsite. South Carolina ACEP (SCCEP) worked tirelessly to support this legislation.

SCCEP credits the swift enactment of the bill to their advocacy’s focus on patient safety. They showed legislators that an emergency physician-led care team is integral to high quality patient care.

Photo Adobe Stock|rarrarorro

“The South Carolina Chapter is pleased with the incredible support we received from our legislators on this issue,” said Lee Katherine “Kat” Moore, MD, FACEP, president of SCCEP. “Our advocacy focused on preserving the existing standard of care. We emphasized that the bill was necessary to maintain the high level of expertise currently present in all our emergency departments.”

South Carolina H. 4067 was signed into law on May 12 and took immediate effect. The bill was modeled on similar laws in Virginia and Indiana that use language developed by ACEP. Both bills passed with strong support from state chapters.

ACEP is proud to lead efforts nationwide to champion emergency physicians as the leaders of care in every ED.