March 21, 2025

ACEP in Washington DC

Action On Capitol Hill

ACEP Leads Coalition Letter Urging Congress to Reauthorize the Dr. Lorna Breen Act

On Tuesday, ACEP led a coalition letter to Congressional leadership that was signed by nearly 70 physician, nurse, pharmacist, and healthcare professional organizations, urging Congress to pass the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Reauthorization Act (H.R. 929/S. 266). This legislation would reauthorize the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act that was originally signed into law on March 18, 2022, named in honor of the life, memory, and legacy of emergency physician Dr. Lorna Breen, MD. It is the first and only law dedicated specifically to improving the mental health and well-being of healthcare professionals throughout the country. The letter was sent on Tuesday (the anniversary of the bill being signed into law) to coincide with Health Workforce Well-Being Day of Awareness to acknowledge the widespread health worker burnout in the U.S. and the need for solutions.

In the message to Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson (R-LA), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), the letter notes that this legislation was passed by each committee of jurisdiction in both chambers during the 118th Congress with overwhelming bipartisan support, and was also a part of the bipartisan, bicameral health package that was unfortunately pulled out of the year-end continuing resolution (CR) at the last minute. The letter asks Congress to ensure the law is reauthorized and funded as soon as possible.

ACEP and this broad coalition of healthcare professional organizations continue working to secure enactment of this important bill to ensure that this vital federal effort to protect the lives and livelihoods of healthcare workers continues.

Democratic Physician Lawmakers Form Congressional Doctors Caucus

Last week, all six Democratic physicians in the House of Representatives launched the Congressional Doctors Caucus, a new group dedicated to advancing evidence-based health care policy and addressing key issues affecting patients and providers. With several new Democratic physicians in the House, the caucus was launched to serve as a Democratic counterpart to the existing House GOP Doctors Caucus. The caucus is led by Herb Conaway Jr., MD (NJ-03), Ami Bera, MD (CA-06), Maxine Dexter, MD (OR-03), Kelly Morrison, MD (MN-03), Raul Ruiz, MD (CA-25), and Kim Schrier, MD (WA-08).

While many of the priorities of both caucuses are aligned, the Congressional Doctors Caucus provides the Democratic physicians with a new lane to distinguish and highlight their specific policy priorities. The group aims to protect access to care, improve physician reimbursement, and ensure robust medical research funding. ACEP looks forward to continuing to work with the members of both the Congressional Doctors Caucus and House GOP Doctors Caucus to advance policies that strengthen emergency care and support physicians.

Regulatory Update

ACEP Responds to Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Plan 

On March 14, ACEP submitted our response to the Administration’s request for information on the development of an AI action plan. In our response, we stated that ACEP believes that healthcare AI must be designed, developed, and deployed in a manner which is ethical, responsible, accurate, transparent, and evidence-based. Our response focuses on three main areas: ensuring clinician oversight in AI integration, developing best practices and risk mitigation strategies, and advancing data standardization and interoperability.

ACEP Meets with Federal Trade Commission on Labor Concerns

On Friday, ACEP President Alison Haddock and ACEP advocacy staff met with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to discuss concerns about noncompete clauses and consolidation in the emergency medicine market, following FTC’s announcement of their Joint Labor Task Force. ACEP intends to continue communications with FTC staff to advocate for a competitive labor market.

Updates to the Executive Order Tracker

A flurry of executive orders issued in the opening days of this administration are impacting health workers and emergency care. Click here to find a resource to help keep track of those that are most relevant to emergency medicine.

State Updates

Arkansas Senate Moves Forward with Naturopathic Doctor Bill

The Naturopathic Physician Practice Act (SB 117) intends to formalize the profession of naturopaths within Arkansas. The bill proposes creating the Arkansas State Board of Natural Medicine to oversee naturopathic medicine, which is currently overseen by the Arkansas State Board of Acupuncture and Related Techniques. The Arkansas State Board of Natural Medicine would be responsible for establishing guidelines for naturopathic medical schools and regulating licensure and compliance with professional standards for naturopaths.

Although naturopaths receive four years of graduate-level training, it is not comparable to the tens of thousands of training and patient care hours physicians complete. ACEP fully supports physician-led care, with readily available resources to ensure patients receive high-quality care from qualified physicians.

State Legislation Tracked by ACEP
To share legislative activity happening in your state, contact Adam Krushinskie. Check out the state legislation that is currently identified and being tracked by ACEP: 

• ED Boarding 
• Reimbursement 
• Reproductive Health 
• Scope of Practice 
• Violence Against Health Care Workers 
• All other policies

Maximize Your Advocacy Efforts

ACEP’s 2025 Leadership and Advocacy Conference 

Join ACEP members from around the country on April 27-29 in Washington DC at LAC25, the premier advocacy event for emergency physicians. Your advocacy on Capitol Hill and in your communities is vital as we work to tackle the challenges facing emergency medicine, and LAC25 will give you the tools to advocate for your colleagues, patients, and the public. 

A few highlights from the LAC programming:

• Three "Conversations with Congress" sessions
  • Rep. John Joyce, MD (R-PA)
  • Rep. Kim Schrier, MD (D-WA)
  • Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) & Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY), Co-Chairs of the Problem Solvers Caucus
• "Board Out of Our Minds: Using Data to Tackle the ED Boarding Crisis"
• "Medicaid: Basics and Reform Perspectives"
• "Growing Threats to Clinical Autonomy"

With the House and the Senate both in session for LAC25, ACEP members will have the opportunity to advocate for emergency medicine to legislators from both chambers. These in-person meetings are critical for educating legislators about the issues emergency physicians deal with every day.

Visit our website to learn more and register for LAC25 today!