In our challenging and cost-conscious healthcare environment, advocacy is an essential skill for all health professionals. As rheumatology health professionals, we advocate for our patients with insurers, institutional administrators, employers, and teachers. To bring about needed healthcare reforms, we must also learn to be effective political advocates.
ACR Board Lobbies Congress
ACR Board of Directors members recently spent time in Washington, D.C., discussing rheumatology-related issues with members of Congress, including Sen. Edward M. “Ted” Kennedy (D-Mass.). The senior senator from Massachusetts is the chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, which oversees health legislation that affects rheumatologists.
Contact Congress Today about Medicare Reimbursement
Changing the Medicare physician reimbursement formula so that it more accurately mirrors the cost of care is a top legislative concern for the ACR this year. The reimbursement scale is currently calculated using the sustainable growth rate (SGR), which is based on the gross domestic product and is irrelevant to medical care. The formula has steadily decreased physician reimbursement since its inception.
Rheumatology Goes to Washington
Volunteers converge on Capitol Hill for the ACR’s annual Advocates for Arthritis Day
Make Our Voice Heard
It’s up to you to take rheumatology’s case to Congress
PAC a Punch on Capitol Hill
New political action committee will be a voice for rheumatology
A Renewed Sense of Purpose
ACR’s success depends on its members
Interprofessional Collaboration Opportunities Abound for ARHP Members
Meeting the needs of persons with complex, chronic diseases is increasingly challenging in a healthcare environment where the demand for high-quality comprehensive services is coupled with dwindling resources. According to the Institute of Medicine, “the ability to plan care and practice effectively using multidisciplinary teams takes on increasing importance as the proportion of the population with chronic conditions grows.”1 This kind of collaboration is increasingly important to ensure high-quality, cost-effective, comprehensive patient-centered care.
Keep ACR at the Table
Without your help, ACR will lose its clout at the AMA
Your Representatives on Capitol Hill
Government Affairs Committee advocates on behalf of the ACR and all rheumatologists