ACS Advocacy Brief: September 8

Advocacy in Action

ACS Welcomes Anesthesiologists to Advocacy Efforts Aimed at Protecting Seniors’ Access to Care

With Medicare payment reductions for surgeons and care teams looming in 2023 and seniors’ access to care in jeopardy as a result, it is more important than ever that all surgical care stakeholders speak with a unified voice urging Congress to prevent the cuts.

The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) and its membership of 55,000 recently joined the ACS-led Surgical Care Coalition (SCC), which is working with Congress to address cuts for 2023 while advocating for a permanent fix to the Medicare payment system.

“The addition of the ASA will strengthen the coalition’s work in addressing crucial policy issues affecting the delivery of surgical care across the nation,” said Patricia Turner, MD, MBA, FACS, ACS Executive Director. “ASA’s membership reflects the coalition’s efforts to improve all aspects of a patient’s surgical experience. Its members will be a vital addition to our collective efforts advocating for our patients and as we work to prevent Medicare cuts that harm them.”

Earlier this year, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services proposed an approximately 4.5% cut to the Medicare Resource-Based Relative Value Scale conversion factor and an approximately 4% cut to the anesthesia conversion factor. These would be combined with the pending 4% Pay-As-You-Go (PAYGO) cut.

Learn more about how Medicare pays surgeons, as well as anesthesiologists.

Take action! Visit ACS SurgeonsVoice today to write Congress and tell lawmakers to stop these Medicare physician payment cuts.

Still Time to Make an Advocacy Impact: Use ACS Advocacy at Home Resources

Nine out of 10 congressional representatives have no healthcare background, yet 100% vote on health policy issues impacting surgery.

Help the ACS educate Congress about the many issues facing surgery and surgical patients. The College needs surgeon advocates to regularly engage with and inform their lawmakers about various healthcare issues confronting the surgical community. The ACS is calling on all surgeons to participate and consider visiting with legislators so that ACS-supported priorities are heard in Washington, DC, and across the US.

By regularly participating in advocacy at home, you can help raise the profile of issues impacting surgeons and surgical patients and establish yourself as a trusted resource to members of Congress and their staff. Whether meetings occur in-person or virtually, your participation demonstrates a commitment to surgeon advocacy, particularly in developing and maintaining relationships with key elected officials who demonstrate a commitment to promoting important surgical health policy matters.

While the Advocacy at Home Program is typically limited to the August congressional recess, many surgeons have plans to visit with lawmakers in September, and the program will remain active into October when many elected officials will return home for campaigning and visiting with constituents prior to Election Day 2022.

With another round of proposed Medicare payment cuts looming, in addition to a plethora of other priorities that require Congress’s attention, time is of the essence. You can still help make an impact and ensure surgery’s voice is heard. Use SurgeonsVoice to register and request meetings with your lawmakers’ offices. Visit the Advocacy at Home web page and contact ahp@facs.org for more information.