CHICAGO—The American College of Surgeons welcomes President Bush's renewed focus on health care issues and his plan to more vigorously pursue changes that will lead to improvements in the health of all of the citizens of this country. As Congress begins renewed debate on these issues and undertakes efforts to develop new proposals to reign in entitlement spending, the College calls upon the President and the members of Congress to expand their focus and address the broader health system reforms that are needed to ensure that surgeons can continue to provide the critical health care services our citizens need–and that our citizens will continue to have access to that care when they need it.

The College agrees with the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services that every individual in this country needs to be given both information and incentives to better manage their own health so that costly illnesses and physical conditions might be avoided. It is important to remember, however, that despite the most vigorous efforts aimed at prevention, many Americans may ultimately be affected by a disease, disability, emergency condition, or accident that will require expert specialty care. Often such situations mean that patients will need expert surgical care.

As a result, it is imperative that whenever possible our citizens be able to choose the surgeon who is best qualified and most appropriately trained to provide the surgical care that is needed for any problem they may face. Over the course of its history, the American College of Surgeons has been committed to developing programs that will improve the quality of care for individuals needing surgical care. The College has set standards that dictate the parameters governing the best in trauma and cancer care, and it recently has added programs to set standards for new and evolving surgical procedures and the use of technology for those procedures. Through data gathering and the development of outcomes measures that can be shared with both the profession and the public, the College believe its efforts will ultimately provide patients with the tools they need to make effective decisions regarding their surgical care and the surgeon they chose to provide it.

The College remains committed to working with all parties concerned to achieve meaningful and balanced reform of this country's health care system, to address the liability crisis, to improve access to care, and to control escalating health care costs.

The American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational organization of surgeons that was founded in 1913 to raise the standards of surgical practice and to improve the care of the surgical patient. The College is dedicated to the ethical and competent practice of surgery. Its achievements have significantly influenced the course of scientific surgery in America and have established it as an important advocate for all surgical patients. The College has more than 70,000 members and is the largest organization of surgeons in the world.

Online February 1 , 2006

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