Become a member and receive career-enhancing benefits
Our top priority is providing value to members. Your Member Services team is here to ensure you maximize your ACS member benefits, participate in College activities, and engage with your ACS colleagues. It's all here.
Become a member and receive career-enhancing benefits
Our top priority is providing value to members. Your Member Services team is here to ensure you maximize your ACS member benefits, participate in College activities, and engage with your ACS colleagues. It's all here.
Government Funding Package Includes ACS Priorities
The House of Representatives this week passed a government funding package, clearing one of the last major hurdles before the January 30 deadline. The Consolidated Appropriations Act includes funding for key health programs, including several which ACS strongly supported. They include provisions that would:
Increase funding for the Hospital Preparedness Program ($67 million increase over 2025), military-civilian trauma training partnerships within the Department of Defense ($4 million increase), the National Institutes of Health ($415 million increase), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ($1.7 billion increase), and the National Cancer Institute ($128 million increase)
Continue funding for the Mission Zero military-civilian trauma grants program, firearm injury prevention, and the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health
Extend the Dr. Lorna Breen Healthcare Provider Protection Act through 2030 and the COVID-era Medicare telehealth flexibilities through 2027
Reject the 15% cap on indirect research costs, prevent lump-sum funding for multiyear NIH research grants, and encourage the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to consult with the Appropriations Committee prior to terminating grants
Continued funding also was included for the CDC Injury Center; the ACS recently joined a coalition letter urging the financial support.
Although Congress has yet to advance reauthorization legislation for the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPA), many of the programs included in PAHPA, such as Mission Zero and the Hospital Preparedness Program mentioned above, were funded as part of this package. The ACS continues to advocate for full PAHPA reauthorization, as well as on ways to stop the -2.5% “efficiency adjustment” in the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule.
Separately, the House also passed fiscal year 2026 funding for the State Department and other national security programs. The bill includes language requiring the State Department to report back to Congress on its planned use of funds for the purposes of strengthening global surgical programs.
The Senate is likely to vote next week on both the Consolidated Appropriations Act and the State Department funding.
Legislation Aims to Improve Surgical Care Access
Reps. Ami Bera, MD (D-CA), John Joyce, MD (R-PA), Scott Peters (D-CA), and Don Bacon (R-NE) have introduced the Ensuring Access to General Surgery Act of 2026, which would direct the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) to study and define a general surgery workforce shortage area and to collect data on the adequacy of access to surgical services.
Additionally, this legislation would grant the HHS Secretary the authority to create a general surgery shortage area designation.
"In light of growing evidence demonstrating a maldistribution of general surgeons, the ACS believes that additional research is necessary to better understand where critical shortage areas exist,” said Patricia L. Turner, MD, MBA, FACS, ACS Executive Director and CEO, thanking Reps. Bera, Joyce, Peters, and Bacon for their continued leadership on the issue.
Unlike other key providers, general surgeons do not currently have a formal workforce shortage area designation. Determining where patients lack access to surgical services and designating a formal surgical shortage area would provide a valuable new tool for increasing access to a full spectrum of high-quality healthcare services.
Additionally, incentivizing general surgeons to locate or remain in communities with workforce shortages is essential in guaranteeing that all patients have access to quality surgical care.
Urge your representatives to support the Ensuring Access to General Surgery Act by visiting SurgeonsVoice today.
This ACS-endorsed legislation allows law enforcement to purchase Stop the Bleed kits and other bleeding control supplies using funds from the Edward J. Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program (Byrne JAG), helping to ensure that first responders have the tools necessary to save lives when minutes matter. The Byrne JAG program, administered by the Department of Justice (DOJ), provides funding to support a wide range of law enforcement and criminal justice activities, including training and supplies.
The law requires that kits purchased with these funds include a Committee on Tactical Combat Casualty Care-recommended tourniquet and instructional materials developed by stakeholders, including the ACS. Further, it directs the DOJ to collaborate with stakeholder organizations on establishing standards for trauma kits and provide best practices for law enforcement agencies on how to use the kits. The ACS will continue engaging with the agency on this standards development effort.
CPT Coding, Payment Models, and Physician Reimbursement See Significant Updates in 2026
Significant updates to surgical coding and reimbursement took effect in 2026 that will impact surgeons and their staff. The January Bulletin provides details on three important topics:
Learn about new Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) final rule payment policy, coding, and reimbursement changes, which took effect on January 1.
Submit Your 2025 Quality Payment Program Data
On January 2, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that data submission for the 2025 performance year of the Quality Payment Program (QPP) is now open. Surgeons may submit and update data through March 31, 2026, at 8:00 pm ET.
Surgeons whose 2025 data was reported by a third party should follow the same steps to review the submission for accuracy. Errors cannot be corrected after the submission period closes, so it is important to ensure the data submitted is accurate.
Surgeons who are unsure about their eligibility to participate in the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) can check their status using the QPP Participation Status tool. Clinicians and groups that are opt-in eligible will need to make an election to opt-in or voluntarily report before they can submit data.
Surgeons are encouraged to submit their data early during the submission period to allow adequate time for assistance if needed.
Hone Critical Leadership and Advocacy Skills at Next Month’s Summit
Surgeons in all disciplines and career stages are invited to the ACS Leadership & Advocacy Summit, February 28–March 3 in Washington, DC, to take part in transformational leadership sessions and develop strategies to advance health policy and influence the future of surgery. Learn more from ACS executive leaders Michael J. Sutherland, MD, MBA, FACS, and Christian Shalgian.
The Advocacy Summit will also include a high-profile keynote speaker and allow surgeons to visit Capitol Hill to share their invaluable perspective with federal policymakers regarding the ACS’s legislative priorities.
