ACEP on the Hill
U.S. Surgeon General Releases Advisory on Public Health Crisis of Firearm Violence
On Monday, the United States Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued an advisory declaring firearm violence an urgent public health crisis, the first of its kind from the Surgeon General’s office. The advisory highlights the consequences of firearm violence on the health and well-being of Americans, detailing the impact of firearm violence beyond death and injury, describing the cascading harm for youth, families, communities, and other populations.
ACEP President Aisha Terry, MD, MPH, FACEP, issued a statement in concert with the advisory, stating, “By raising awareness of this public health crisis, The Surgeon General’s Advisory on Firearm Violence speaks to the gun violence that emergency physicians observe all too often, as well as the repercussions on the communities they serve.”
A more detailed ACEP summary of the report can be found here.
W&M Committee Hearing on Value-Based Care
On Wednesday, the House Committee on Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health held a hearing, entitled, “Improving Value-Based Care for Patients and Providers.” The hearing focused on the various challenges and opportunities associated with delivering better health outcomes and Medicare savings through value-based care.
Members and witnesses discussed a number of issues, including the limitations of the existing fee-for-service (FFS) payment model, how the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation Center (CMMI) has not lived up to its promise of implementing successful and transparent models, telehealth services, rural access to care, among others.
While Subcommittee Chairman Vern Buchanan (R-FL) did not elaborate on the subcommittee’s next steps, ACEP continues to work with the Ways and Means Committee and other committees of jurisdiction to address the fundamental issues affecting Medicare physician payment and the ability for emergency physicians to effectively participate in value-based care models.
SCOTUS Dismisses EMTALA Case; Returns to Lower Court
On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court delivered a 6-3 opinion in Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States that temporarily allows abortions in the case of a medical emergency in the state of Idaho. At the heart of the cases was whether Idaho’s ban on abortion in nearly all cases conflicted with the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), which is a bedrock principle of emergency care.
The Court did not rule on the merits of the cases, instead determining that the cases were “improvidently granted” and should not have been considered, effectively punting the cases back to the lower courts and reinstating a lower court ruling allowing providers to terminate a pregnancy to protect the life or health of the mother.
ACEP issued a statement in response to the ruling, reinforcing previous comments and policy and urging courts in Idaho and throughout the country to avoid restricting or undermining access to vital emergency care, and to ensure that emergency physicians do not have to fear legal or criminal reprisals for delivering evidence-based medical care.
