On the Hill
Explore This Issue
ACEP Now: Vol 38 – No 06 – June 2019L. Anthony Cirillo, MD, FACEP, (left) and Valerie A. Pierre, MD.
Valerie Pierre
Tuesday’s meetings on Capitol Hill were perfectly timed. We asked members of Congress to co-sponsor ACEP-crafted legislation to improve the community resources available for patients needing mental health care. The Improving Mental Health Access from the Emergency Department Act, sponsored in the House by emergency physician Rep. Raul Ruiz, MD (D-CA), and in the Senate by Sen. Shelley Capito-Moore (R-WV), would provide grant funding to communities to bolster outpatient and inpatient behavioral health care services.
As we met with legislators, our second request was for support for a fair and reasonable legislative solution to the issue of out-of-network balance billing. ACEP is advocating for a framework solution that protects patients from additional financial risk when they receive out-of-network care in an ED but ensures providers receive a fair payment from insurers for the care provided. This is a rapidly-developing issue. See the sidebar to catch up with the surprise billing developments since LAC.
Be There Next Year
LAC is a great opportunity to educate yourself on the political and policy issues affecting how we care for patients. It is a tremendous opportunity to be a strong voice for your patients and your profession by speaking directly with members of Congress and other federal policymakers.
Save the date: The next Leadership & Advocacy Conference is April 25, 2020.
Dr. Cirillo is a member of the ACEP Board of Directors and the director of government affairs for US Acute Care Solutions.
LAC19: A First-Timer’s Perspective
by Valerie A. Pierre, MD
LAC19 was an amazing networking and professional opportunity that solidified my interest in emergency medicine policy. As the health care landscape in America rapidly evolves, emergency physicians can no longer adequately care for our patients within the confines of our departments. To best serve our diverse and unique patient populations, we must become advocates outside the ED as well.
The Health Policy Primer sponsored by EMRA and ACEP’s Young Physicians Section gave me a better perspective of the importance of leadership and advocacy in our field. There is an increasing focus on mental health, its complex interface with substance abuse, and one’s physical health, in addition to the rising health care costs and their effect on our economy.
Steven Stack, MD, MBA, FACEP, the first emergency physician to serve as president of the AMA, reaffirmed what I now know to be true when he said, “If you don’t have a seat at the table, you’re probably on the menu.”
Pages: 1 2 3 | Single Page
No Responses to “Update from ACEP’s 2019 Leadership & Advocacy Conference”