Perspective

Perspective / en Fri, 01 Aug 2025 12:43:02 -0500 Fri, 01 Aug 25 08:29:59 -0500 Connect with Your Lawmakers and Urge Them to Protect Access to Care /news/perspective/2025-08-01-connect-your-lawmakers-and-urge-them-protect-access-care House members are back in their districts for the August recess and senators are likely to return to their states soon.While lawmakers are home, it’s important for hospital and health system leaders to connect with their representatives and senators as we gear up for a busy fall and winter. Congress must act by Sept. 30 to fund the federal government — including certain important health care programs — for the next fiscal year. If Congress does not enact all 12 appropriations bills, a continuing resolution would be needed to avoid a government shutdown. And some legislators are discussing another reconciliation package on deficit reduction efforts.Our message: Hospitals and health systems cannot sustain any additional funding reductions, especially as they face the implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and its significant cuts to Medicaid and other health programs. Congress must extend key policies, including several that expire within the next few months: relief from Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital cuts, enhanced premium tax credits that help millions of individuals and families purchase insurance on the Health Insurance Marketplaces, and telehealth, hospital-at-home and rural hospital programs.&nbsp;&nbsp;Funding the government will happen through regular order. The Senate will need 60 votes to pass legislation, meaning Democrats also will be involved, and all representatives and senators will be important for the process. While your lawmakers are home until Labor Day, please make plans to visit them in their offices.&nbsp; Speak with them at a community event. Or better yet, invite them to your hospital to see firsthand the importance of supporting policies that allow hospitals to provide care for their communities. Let them witness the incredible care your organization provides 24/7 and explain to them the impact that funding reductions will have on your ability to provide services for the people they represent.As outlined in an <a href="/action-alert/2025-07-28-take-action-engage-lawmakers-august-build-support-key-priorities" title="AHA Action Alert">AHA Action Alert</a> released earlier this week, here are some of the top priority issues and resources that can assist you and your team in conversations with your lawmakers.Extend the Enhanced Premium Tax Credits&nbsp;that help individuals and families purchase insurance on the Health Insurance Marketplaces. Policies enabling these credits will expire at the end of 2025.Reject So-called Site-neutral Payment Proposals&nbsp;that fail to consider hospitals treat sicker, lower-income and more complex patients while being held to higher regulatory and safety standards than other care sites.&nbsp;Protect the 340B Drug Pricing Program&nbsp;that hospitals depend on to manage rising prescription drug costs and expand access to care for patients.Extend Telehealth and Hospital-at-home Programs&nbsp;that enable providers to care for patients conveniently at home.Prevent Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital Cuts&nbsp;that would threaten essential financial assistance to hospitals that care for our nation’s most vulnerable populations, including children and those who are disabled and elderly.Extend the Low-volume Adjustment and Medicare-dependent Hospital Programs&nbsp;that provide rural, geographically isolated and low-volume hospitals additional financial support to ensure rural residents have access to care.Protect Health Care Workers from Violence&nbsp;by enacting the Save Healthcare Workers Act (H.R. 3178/S. 1600) — bipartisan legislation that would make it a federal crime to assault a hospital staff member on the job.We all understand this is a period of change and uncertainty. That’s why your voice is more important than ever. Your legislators listen to you. Please tell your hospital’s story and use these <a href="/advocacy/2023-03-07-advocacy-tips-and-best-practices" title="Tips and best practices">tips and best practices</a> for meeting with lawmakers and hosting them at your hospital. Visit the <a href="/advocacy/action-center" title="AHA Action Center">AHA Action Center</a> for more information and resources to assist you in your advocacy.Advocacy and education are the keys to protecting access to care for patients and communities. Fri, 01 Aug 2025 08:29:59 -0500 Perspective Delivering Safe, Quality Care to Patients Is the Top Priority for Hospitals and Health Systems /news/perspective/2025-07-25-delivering-safe-quality-care-patients-top-priority-hospitals-and-health-systems The 2025 AHA Leadership Summit wrapped up on July 22, and as always, it was energizing and inspiring to connect with so many talented and dedicated people whose passion and vision for health care promise great things for the future.But even as we heard new ideas about innovative approaches shaping care delivery today, we know that all these exciting advancements will never take anyone’s eye off the true North Star of health care: quality and patient safety.Delivering safe, high quality care to patients remains hospitals’ top priority and is at the center of everything they do. The AHA continues to play a key role in leading and supporting the field by developing new resources, spreading innovative initiatives and strategies, and highlighting outstanding efforts through national recognition programs.One way we do this is through the <a href="/aha-patient-safety-initiative" target="_blank">AHA’s Patient Safety Initiative</a>, which was launched in 2023 to catalyze, convene and connect members around patient safety while helping lift up your own powerful stories. This initiative focuses on providing hospitals with tools and data to advance patient safety, offers a platform for sharing their stories of improvement with peers and highlights examples of innovation that support, spread and sustain safety improvement.As part of the initiative, this week we announced a <a href="/news/headline/2025-07-24-aha-epic-collaborate-toward-improving-maternal-health-outcomes" target="_blank">collaboration with the health care technology company Epic</a> to help more hospitals adopt a set of tools to aid in the detection and treatment of postpartum hemorrhage — a serious and potentially life-threatening complication of childbirth that accounts for 11% of maternal deaths in the United States. Point-of-care tools in electronic health records can help health care providers prevent, detect and treat postpartum hemorrhage, ultimately saving lives and improving care for mothers across America.This work builds on the <a href="/better-health-for-mothers-and-babies" target="_blank">AHA’s Better Health for Mothers and Babies Initiative</a>, which provides a wide array of resources to help hospitals and health care systems play a key role in improving maternal and infant outcomes.&nbsp;Hospitals and health systems do some of their most important learning from each other. Sharing best practices, ideas and experiences that have succeeded in improving health and safety outcomes is one of the best ways to advance health for our field.Throughout the Leadership Summit, we hosted many workshops and sessions focused on quality and patient safety. We heard from hospital and health system leaders about how cutting-edge artificial intelligence is transforming the patient and clinical experience, how employee engagement is a driver of safety, quality and the patient experience of care, and how to integrate storytelling into patient safety efforts.We also recognized several hospitals and health systems with AHA awards, including <a href="/press-releases/2025-07-15-aha-honors-two-exemplary-health-systems-their-dedication-and-commitment-quality" target="_blank">AHA’s Quest for Quality Prize</a>, which honors exceptional health care leadership and innovation in improving quality and advancing health in America’s communities.Health care ultimately is about people caring for other people. While hospitals and health systems continue to make progress advancing quality and safety, we know that the journey is far from over. As we navigate the challenging road ahead with exciting opportunities to advance clinical care, even with its unpredictable twists and turns, quality and patient safety will always be our guide. Fri, 25 Jul 2025 09:21:14 -0500 Perspective Leadership, Vision and Innovation Continue to Drive U.S. Health Care /news/perspective/2025-07-11-leadership-vision-and-innovation-continue-drive-us-health-care <ul><li>Personalized cancer vaccines that are tailored to individual patients, targeting the specific mutations present in their tumors.</li><li>AI analysis of pathology slides that detects cancer with higher accuracy, reducing diagnostic errors and enabling improved patient outcomes.</li><li>3D printing of living tissues with the potential for creating transplantable organs that could eventually solve the global organ shortage crisis and offer better outcomes for transplant recipients.</li></ul>These are among the innovations in the medical and health fields that have taken great strides forward just in the past year,&nbsp;driven by advancements in technology, research and global health needs.Our era is a time of remarkable innovation and fresh thinking. However, we have seen that recent actions taken by Congress create formidable challenges ahead in our mission of advancing health for all — and will make it even harder to invest in technology and other advancements in clinical care. We will need to find creative and innovative ways to continue our path of progress in improving care for today and tomorrow.I believe we are up to the task. American health care is blessed with motivated clinicians, care teams and hospital and health system leaders who strive to push the field forward, knowing that there is always new knowledge to be gained, new boundaries to explore and new ways to improve the patient care experience.And so many of the advancements and modern techniques that are improving the patient experience today originate within the walls of our hospitals, which continue to drive innovative care transformation. Pharma drugmakers haven’t cornered the market on innovation, nor have Silicon Valley tech companies.True innovation is in the steps forward hospitals and health systems are taking to deliver safe, high-quality care for all patients in their communities.True innovation is how hospitals have implemented and continue to enhance telemedicine and remote patient monitoring.&nbsp;True innovation is how hospitals are developing and using new technologies and strategies that improve patient care and increase operational efficiency.True innovation is seen in the collaboration between hospitals and private sector partners to address health care’s most complex and pressing challenges and to forge practical and tactical innovations for health systems and their patients.Exchanging ideas is what drives innovation. <a href="https://leadershipsummit.aha.org/" title="AHA Leadership Summit">AHA’s Leadership Summit</a>, which will be held July 20-22 in Nashville, Tenn., brings together many of the best minds in health care, medicine and technology with a shared passion for innovation as the road to advancing health.&nbsp;Our expert speakers will explore six key health care focus areas over these three days, providing the opportunity to stay on top of the major issues, trends and developments affecting our field.&nbsp;At the Summit, attendees will hear from senior health care executives, clinicians and experts in the field about innovative approaches to addressing financial challenges, future-focused strategic planning, unleashing the potential of hospital-at-home programs and dozens of other topics shaping our approach to care today.We’ll explore solutions to challenges facing everyone, such as strengthening the health care workforce, redefining the role of health systems and integrating physical and behavioral health within our workforces. Other sessions will examine how cutting-edge AI is transforming the patient and clinician experience, ways to build public trust and confidence in health care, critical response cybersecurity exercises for hospital leaders, and how hospitals and health systems can impact public policy through effective advocacy.The AHA Leadership Summit offers something valuable for every health care professional. It’s a great way to get updated on what’s happening across our field, as well as network and tap into the terrific energy that comes from connecting with colleagues, peers and friends who share common goals and concerns.There’s still time to register for this year’s <a href="https://leadershipsummit.aha.org/" title="AHA Leadership Summit">AHA Leadership Summit</a>. Please view the <a href="https://web.cvent.com/event/05ffbe14-fab7-4ddf-89d9-93f63942d9ca/websitePage:44c2cfcd-a0ea-4f01-bbe4-16d10551d7bb" title="AHA Leadership Summit Agenda">agenda</a> and register today. In addition, please visit our <a href="/tellingthehospitalstory" title="Telling the Hospital Story Webpage">Telling the Hospital Story webpage</a>&nbsp; for examples of how hospitals and health systems are driving innovation and to share your own organization’s story with us.&nbsp;We hope to see you in Nashville! Fri, 11 Jul 2025 08:07:31 -0500 Perspective Act Now to Protect Access to Care /news/perspective/2025-06-25-act-now-protect-access-care In the next few days, Senate Republican leaders plan to unveil and vote on their updated reconciliation bill, which, as currently constructed, would have far-ranging negative consequences for patients, communities and hospitals across America.With a final vote in the Senate possible as early as this weekend and key provisions still being negotiated, it’s critical that we reach out now to Senate and House Republicans to urge them to protect access to health care and services in communities. Specifically, we also need to urge them to make changes to the Senate reconciliation provisions related to Medicaid provider taxes and state-directed payments. The Senate’s proposal further erodes the legitimate use of provider taxes and state-directed payment programs that help bridge the gap of chronic and historic Medicaid underpayments.&nbsp;See our <a href="/action-alert/2025-06-20-urgent-senate-budget-reconciliation-vote-expected-next-week-contact-senate-and-house-lawmakers-today" title="AHA Action Alert">Action Alert</a> for more details.As we have been saying for weeks, the magnitude of Medicaid reductions and changes to the Health Insurance Marketplace included in the reconciliation bill will shift millions of Americans from insured to uninsured status.&nbsp;These cuts will further strain emergency departments as they become the family doctor to millions of newly uninsured people.Everyone will be affected by these cuts, not just Medicaid beneficiaries. Across the country, we’ll see longer wait times for care and services, and it will be harder for hospitals to invest in technology and advancements in clinical care. And worse, some hospitals, especially those in rural communities, may be forced to close altogether.<h2>Making Our Voice Heard Now</h2>We hosted a special call yesterday for all AHA members to provide the latest updates from Capitol Hill and urge them to engage directly with their senators and representatives at this critical juncture. Lawmakers need to hear from their hospital leaders, hospital trustees, doctors, nurses and community leaders about the negative impact their proposals would have for their constituents and their local hospital’s ability to provide care.At the same time, the AHA is pulling all the levers we can to mitigate the negative proposals in the bill. We are meeting with senators and representatives daily. We are releasing <a href="/advocacy/advocacy-issues/medicaid" title="new advocacy resources">new advocacy tools, data and reports</a> highlighting the losses in health care coverage, jobs and economic activity that would result from the bill. We are <a href="/advocacy/advocacy-issues/medicaid" title="new videos">spotlighting videos</a> in which hospital and health system leaders, including nurses, doctors and other caregivers, share the importance of Medicaid and describe how cuts would impact access to care for their patients and communities.&nbsp;And the <a href="https://strengthenhealthcare.org/" title="Coalition to Strengthen America&apos;s Healthcare">Coalition to Strengthen America’s Healthcare</a>, of which the AHA is a founding member, continues to run ads on TV, podcasts, radio, newsletters and other digital platforms, as well as engage its more than 2.6 million advocates in grassroots campaigns.The AHA also launched a <a href="/advocacy/advocacy-issues/medicaid" title="new TV and digital ad">new TV and digital ad</a> this week highlighting how&nbsp;when every second counts, America’s hospitals and health systems are there 24/7 to care for patients during all of life’s moments. “People count on us. Now we’re counting on you,” the ad says. “Congress: Protect hospital care.”Please deliver this important message to your senators and representatives. And please ask your family members, friends and community members to engage as well. Your voice matters, and now is the time to speak up! Wed, 25 Jun 2025 09:14:36 -0500 Perspective Your Voice Matters — Protect Access to Care in Your Community /news/perspective/2025-06-18-your-voice-matters-protect-access-care-your-community As the Senate eyes a vote next week on its reconciliation bill, the next few days are crucial for reaching out to your senators and urging them to make changes to the current package, which would have far-ranging negative consequences for patients, communities and hospitals across America.Earlier this week, the <a href="/advisory/2025-06-16-senate-finance-committee-releases-legislative-text-reconciliation-bill?" title="Senate Committee on Finance Bill">Senate Committee on Finance</a> released its portion of the bill, and while many of the health provisions are the same or similar to&nbsp;the House-passed <a href="/advisory/2025-05-22-aha-summary-one-big-beautiful-bill-acts-provisions-impacting-hospitals-and-health-systems" title="One Big Beautiful Bill Act ">One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1)</a>, there are several differences. Simply put: The Senate package moves in the wrong direction as it contains provisions that would likely lead to more coverage losses and reduced access to care and services.&nbsp;The magnitude of Medicaid reductions and changes to health insurance marketplaces will shift millions of Americans from insured to uninsured status.&nbsp;Additionally, the Senate’s proposal further erodes the legitimate use of provider taxes and state directed payment programs that help bridge the gap of chronic and historic Medicaid underpayments.&nbsp;These cuts will further strain emergency departments as they become the family doctor to millions of newly uninsured people. Everyone in your community will be affected by these cuts, not just Medicaid beneficiaries.Across the country, we’ll see longer wait times for care and services. And some hospitals, especially those in rural communities, may be forced to close altogether.These consequences are real, but they are not inevitable. A number of House and Senate Republicans have expressed concern with portions of the package, including some who believe the Medicaid provisions go too far, so we can still influence the debate. That’s why your senators and representatives need to hear from you now about how these cuts will impact care for patients and communities.Advocacy Day and Resources. On Tuesday, nearly 300 hospital and health system leaders participated in an AHA Advocacy Day briefing to get the latest from Capitol Hill before meeting with their lawmakers and staff. See <a href="/action-alert/2025-06-17-act-now-ask-your-lawmakers-protect-medicaid-and-access-care" title="AHA Action Alert">Tuesday’s Action Alert</a> for more details and key messages.&nbsp;We continue to release resources to help you tell your story to lawmakers. This week, we issued an <a href="/fact-sheets/2025-06-13-rural-hospitals-risk-cuts-medicaid-would-further-threaten-access" title="Analysis of key Medicaid providions in H.R. 1">analysis</a> showing that key Medicaid provisions in H.R. 1 would result in a $50.4 billion reduction in federal Medicaid spending on rural hospitals over 10 years and 1.8 million individuals in rural communities losing their Medicaid coverage by 2034.We also are highlighting a <a href="/advocacy/advocacy-issues/medicaid?" title="Medicaid video series">video series</a> in which hospital and health system leaders, including nurses and other caregivers, share the importance of Medicaid and how cuts would impact access to care for their patients and communities.&nbsp;At the same time, the <a href="https://strengthenhealthcare.org/" title="Coalition to Strengthen America&apos;s Healthcare">Coalition to Strengthen America’s Healthcare</a>, of which the AHA is a founding member, is running ads on TV, podcasts, radio, newsletters and other digital platforms targeted at key senators and influencers. A <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzlKN2Txv7g" title="New Coalition Ad">new Coalition ad</a> is up and running this week, highlighting the impact Medicaid cuts would have on all patients, including fewer services, crowded emergency departments, longer wait times and hospital closures. The Coalition also is ramping up its grassroots advocacy efforts and has generated more than 400,000 letters to Congress about the importance of Medicaid.Add Your Voice.&nbsp;While we continue to provide the air cover, it’s so important for you to share with your senators and representatives — as the bill will have to come back to the House for consideration — the negative consequences some of the proposals would have on the patients and communities you serve.It’s been said that “If you're not telling your story, somebody is telling it for you.” We must continue to tell our stories — as many times as necessary — because the health of millions of Americans is at stake.Nothing is more powerful with lawmakers than your voice — and the voices of your team members, trustees, patients and community members. You live, work and, most importantly, vote in their states and districts.Lawmakers must hear directly from you the impact policy proposals would have for their constituents and your ability to provide care. Please add your voice today. Speak up and be heard as we urge Congress to protect access to hospital care. Wed, 18 Jun 2025 10:30:50 -0500 Perspective Uniting to Protect Access to Care /news/perspective/2025-06-11-uniting-protect-access-care The fate of the Trump administration’s legislative centerpiece — the One Big Beautiful Bill Act — continues to be the focal point in Washington, D.C.After the bill’s narrow passage in the House, the Senate is working to put its own stamp on the reconciliation package, which encompasses policy changes on taxes, border security, energy and deficit reduction, including significant changes and cuts to Medicaid and other health care programs. Republicans are aiming to have the legislation through the Senate by the July 4 congressional recess; however, any changes made by the Senate would have to go back to the House for approval.We continue to express concern about the harmful Medicaid and Health Insurance Marketplace provisions included in the House-passed bill, which would cut more than $800 billion from health care programs and result in almost 11 million people losing health care coverage. These cuts will strain already overburdened hospitals and emergency departments as they become the family doctor for millions of newly uninsured Americans, which makes care less accessible for everyone. They also would also set off a damaging ripple effect of job and economic losses as hospitals and communities struggle to manage under the weight of these cuts. Moreover, these payment reductions will simply become an additional “hidden tax” on other purchasers of health care services.In particular, we also continue to be focused like a laser beam on ensuring the preservation of legitimate provider tax and supplemental payment programs, which serve as patches to help finance a chronically underfunded Medicaid program.&nbsp;The notion that these programs represent waste and fraud are far from the truth, as they operate within federal guidelines and are approved by state governments and by both Democratic and Republican administrations, including the Trump administration.&nbsp;Yet even with these financing mechanisms, Medicaid payments to providers are less than the cost of caring.The Senate Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over taxes and Medicaid, as soon as this week could release its legislative text, and there have been some discussions about additional restrictions on Medicaid state directed payments and provider taxes. This would further exacerbate the chronic underpayment for Medicaid services and threaten access to care for all patients in communities across the country.We continue to pull all levers to limit the scope and magnitude of health care reductions contained in this package. We have been meeting with senators and their staff to explain the devastating effects some of the policy changes under consideration would have on the people and communities they represent.Meanwhile, the AHA is running targeted advertising using multiple platforms, including digital, social and traditional media, urging Congress to protect Medicaid and access to care. At the same time, the <a href="https://strengthenhealthcare.org/" title="Coalition to Strengthen America&apos;s Healthcare">Coalition to Strengthen America’s Healthcare</a>, of which the AHA is a founding member, is running ads on TV, podcasts, radio, newsletters and other digital platforms targeted at key senators and influencers. The Coalition also is engaging its grassroots supporters, and since February, the Coalition has generated more than 400,000 letters to Congress about the importance of Medicaid.On Tuesday, June 17, we will host an Advocacy Day in Washington, D.C., during which our team will provide the latest updates on the reconciliation bill before hospital and health system leaders meet with their lawmakers. on Capitol Hill. If you cannot be in <a href="https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=QJMRube-Xk6EsjzBj3s2pnUzMzymJWtHjxrQd2BoFRpUNDNVUkdGWjYyRlJJTUNUVU8wWjVBNTRNWC4u&amp;route=shorturl">Washington</a>, AHA members can register<a href="https://aha-advocacy.ispresenting.live/register/" title="Register to attend virtually for AHA Advocacy Day"> </a>to participate in the event virtually.In addition, we continue to produce <a href="/advocacy/advocacy-issues/medicaid" title="new resources">new resources</a>, including how the bill’s Medicaid reductions could lead to job and <a href="/fact-sheets/2025-06-05-medicaid-spending-reductions-would-lead-losses-jobs-economic-activity-and-tax-revenue-states" title="Medicaid Spending Fact Sheet">economic losses in states</a>, as well as why Medicaid is so important to <a href="/fact-sheets/2025-06-05-medicaid-coverage-supports-rural-patients-hospitals-and-communities" title="Medicaid Supports rural hospitals and communities">rural hospitals and communities</a>. We also are running a <a href="/advocacy/advocacy-issues/medicaid" title="Medicaid video series">video series</a> in which hospital and health system leaders share the importance of Medicaid and how drastic cuts would impact access to care for their patients and communities.We’re at a critical juncture.&nbsp;It’s so important for hospital leaders, patients and community members to <a href="/2020-10-07-get-involved" title="Contact your Senators">weigh in now with your senators</a> and tell them “Don’t Cut Hospital Care.” Your stories have the most impact with your lawmakers, and now is the time to tell them. Wed, 11 Jun 2025 14:38:10 -0500 Perspective Hospitals Lead a National Day of Awareness to End Violence /news/perspective/2025-06-06-hospitals-lead-national-day-awareness-end-violence America’s hospitals and health systems experience firsthand the devastating impact all forms of violence have on individuals’ lives and health. And they see how violence can ripple through a community, affecting not just the injured but their family, friends and neighbors.As beacons of healing, comfort, care and hope, hospitals and health systems are collaborating with community partners to address this important issue.The AHA’s <a href="/hospitals-against-violence-havhope" title="AHA&apos;s Hospitals Against Violence Initiative">Hospitals Against Violence initiative</a> shines a light on how hospitals and health systems are working to heal victims of violence as well as their communities, prevent further acts of violence, and address violence in the workplace. The AHA, working with partner organizations, has developed and shared many resources for hospitals to use to address community and workplace violence.Today, for the ninth consecutive year, AHA is leading <a href="/hospitals-against-violence" title="#HAVhope Friday">#HAVhope Friday</a> — a National Day of Awareness to end violence.&nbsp;#HAVhope unites hospitals, health systems, nurses, doctors, health care professionals and individuals from communities across the country in sharing their commitment to ending violence and highlighting impactful innovative strategies and partnerships. Please take a few minutes to view our <a href="/hospitals-against-violence" title="#HAVhope Webpage">#HAVhope webpage</a>&nbsp; to see many inspiring examples from hospitals and health systems across the country.We know the enormous human and emotional toll violence takes on caregivers and communities. At the same time, a new <a href="/press-releases/2025-06-02-new-aha-report-finds-workplace-and-community-violence-cost-hospitals-more-18-billion-annually" title="new report">report</a>&nbsp; we released this week found that workplace and community violence cost hospitals more than $18 billion in 2023. The report, which was prepared for the AHA by Harborview Injury and Prevention Research Center, part of the University of Washington School of Medicine, found that costs included health care treatment for victims, security staffing for health care facilities, and violence prevention programs and training, among other costs.Hospitals and health systems have long had robust protocols to detect, deter and respond to violence against their team members. These include hospital security and threat assessment teams collaborating with local police departments and other community partners on violence mitigation tactics such as de-escalation training, staff duress alarms, enhanced surveillance security technology and more effective visitor identification policies, among many other measures. Other hospitals are seeking to decrease incidents of workplace violence by upgrading their incident reporting system, boosting prevention education and meticulously tracking data to help prevent future incidents.Despite these efforts, during the past decade the health care field has experienced an increase in workplace violence, and it is showing no signs of subsiding. In addition to causing physical and psychological injury for health care workers, these incidents make it more difficult for nurses, physicians and other team members to provide quality patient care.Currently, no federal law protects hospital workers from workplace assault. That’s why the AHA is advocating for the enactment of the <a href="/news/headline/2025-05-09-aha-expresses-support-save-healthcare-workers-act" title="Save Healthcare Workers Act">Save Healthcare Workers Act</a>,&nbsp; (H.R. 3178/S. 1600) bipartisan, bicameral legislation introduced last month that would make it a federal crime to assault hospital workers, similar to current federal law protecting airline and airport workers.Violence has no place in our communities or in health care settings.&nbsp;We must keep working together to end the cycle of violence and ensure that our nation’s caregivers can focus on what they do best — caring for patients and advancing health in our communities.&nbsp; Fri, 06 Jun 2025 09:09:50 -0500 Perspective As Reconciliation Bill Shifts to the Senate, We Must Speak Up to Protect Medicaid and Access to Care /news/perspective/2025-05-30-reconciliation-bill-shifts-senate-we-must-speak-protect-medicaid-and-access-care After approval in the House last week by a one vote margin, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act — a sweeping package that would enact many of President Trump’s legislative priorities on taxes, border security, energy and deficit reduction, including significant changes and cuts to Medicaid and other health care programs — now moves to the Senate.House Speaker Mike Johnson compared the bill’s difficult journey through the House to “crossing over the Grand Canyon on a piece of dental floss,” and he has urged the Senate “not to meddle with it too much,” as changes will need to come back to the House for final passage.However, the reconciliation package’s move to the Senate really is starting over in many respects as we expect the chamber to consider substantial revisions to the package. Even President Trump said, “I want the Senate and the senators to make the changes they want. I think they are going to have changes. Some will be minor, some will be fairly significant.”The bottom line: At this point, nothing is settled, and we still have opportunities to influence the discussion in the Senate and the legislative package they will consider.&nbsp;Concerns with Current Bill.&nbsp;As noted in our <a href="/news/headline/2025-05-22-house-passes-reconciliation-bill-significant-impacts-medicaid-health-insurance-marketplaces" title="Concerns with the current bill reaction">reaction</a> to last week’s vote, we are concerned about the harmful Medicaid and Health Insurance Marketplace provisions currently included in the bill. The sheer magnitude of the level of reductions to the Medicaid program alone — estimated to decimate federal support by more than $700 billion over 10 years&nbsp;— will impact all patients, not just Medicaid beneficiaries, in every community across the nation.Hospitals, especially in rural and underserved areas, will be forced to make difficult decisions about whether they will have to reduce services, reduce staff and potentially consider closing their doors. Other impacts could include longer waiting times to receive care, more crowded emergency departments, and hospitals not being able to invest in technology and innovations for clinical care.In particular, the Medicaid legislative proposals severely restrict the use of legitimate state funding resources and supplemental payment programs, including provider taxes and state directed payments, under the guise of eliminating waste, fraud and abuse. We reject this notion as these critical, legitimate and well-established Medicaid financing programs are essential to offset decades of chronic underpayments of the cost of care provided to Medicaid patients.We will be urging the Senate to make changes to address these and other issues we have with the bill. More details about the bill’s provisions and AHA’s concerns are included in our recent <a href="/advisory/2025-05-22-aha-summary-one-big-beautiful-bill-acts-provisions-impacting-hospitals-and-health-systems" title="Legislative Advisory expressing issues with the current bill.">Legislative Advisory</a> and <a href="/special-bulletin/2025-05-22-house-passes-reconciliation-bill-significant-policy-changes-and-reductions-medicaid-other-health" title="Special Bulletin expressing concerns with the current bill.">Special Bulletin</a>.Senate Dynamics and Process.&nbsp;When the Senate returns to Washington next week and begins to consider the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, it likely will not conduct traditional committee markups, leaving most of the Senate language to be developed by Senate Republican leadership and staff, as well as committee members and staff.&nbsp;At the same time, Senate Majority Leader John Thune will have to navigate divisions among Republican senators on what changes to make to the bill. For example, fiscal conservatives Sens. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., and Rand Paul, R-Ky., have already stated their refusal to vote for the legislation unless deeper spending cuts are made. Meanwhile, moderates, including Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, have expressed concerns about Medicaid changes, while Sens. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., and Jim Justice, R-W.Va., have voiced apprehension about the Medicaid provider tax changes.&nbsp;Making Our Voices Heard.&nbsp;With the Senate aiming to pass its bill before the July 4 recess, the next few weeks will be critical to help shape changes to the Senate bill. The AHA will host an Advocacy Day briefing in Washington, D.C., on June 17 to provide the latest updates on the reconciliation bill before hospital and health system leaders meet with their lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Please visit our <a href="/advocacy/action-center" title="AHA Action Center">Action Center</a> for the latest updates and resources.In addition, the AHA next week is running digital advertising inside the Beltway urging Congress to protect Medicaid and access to care. At the same time, the <a href="https://strengthenhealthcare.org/" title="Coalition to Strengthen America&apos;s Healthcare">Coalition to Strengthen America’s Healthcare</a>, of which the AHA is a founding member, continues to run TV and digital advertisements, including its <a href="https://strengthenhealthcare.org/coalition-to-strengthen-americas-healthcare-new-faces-of-medicaid-ad-mom/" title="Coalition to Strengthen America&apos;s Health Care latest ad ">latest ad</a> in its national Faces of Medicaid campaign, calling attention to the devastating effects that Medicaid cuts would have on millions of seniors and their families.While we provide the air cover, it’s so important for you to share with your senators the negative consequences some of the proposals would have on the patients and communities you serve.Nothing is more powerful with lawmakers than your voice — and the voices of your team members, trustees, patients and community members. You live, work and, most importantly, vote in their states and districts. You have their attention and can explain to them the impact policy proposals would have for their constituents and your ability to provide care.With so much at stake, it is vital that we continue speaking with one voice to protect the blue and white “H” that is a beacon of health, healing and hope in every community across the nation. Fri, 30 May 2025 08:35:47 -0500 Perspective This Memorial Day, Reflection and Remembrance from a Grateful Nation /news/perspective/2025-05-23-memorial-day-reflection-and-remembrance-grateful-nation In December 2024, Army 2nd Lt. Regina Benson celebrated her 105th birthday. At the time of her passing the following month, she was America’s oldest military nurse, having served during World War II in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps in Hawaii, Okinawa and Japan from 1944 to 1946.Benson provided critical medical care to wounded soldiers during the war, as well as set up hospitals, supervised wards of medical, surgical and orthopedic patients, and assisted in life-saving operations.In 2020, Benson received the Angel of Honor Award at the Armed Services YMCA's 14th annual Angels of the Battlefield Awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., which honors selfless courage and unwavering sacrifice for actions by America’s military service members, past and present.“I made sure that my patients never died alone,” she remembered. “I was always there with them so that I could tell their mothers that they did not die alone.”If a single individual’s life could capture the spirit of what our brave healers and caregivers have contributed to our nation in times of war, it is Army 2nd Lt. Regina Benson.More than 1.3 million U.S. military personnel have given their lives in service to their country since 1775. And caregivers — physicians and surgeons, nurses, medics, corpsmen and others — have stood with our armed forces from the beginning, risking and sometimes losing their own lives in the process.The connection between hospitals, caregivers and Memorial Day underscores the enduring legacy of service and sacrifice in the health care profession. Like members of the military, health care workers have often put themselves in harm's way to care for others, especially during times of crisis and conflict.Over the years, Memorial Day has expanded to honor not only fallen soldiers but also military medical personnel who have sacrificed their lives in service to their country. Instead of weapons, their hands held bandages, syringes, medicine and the tools of healing, but their ultimate sacrifice was no less.Memorial Day serves as a poignant reminder of the shared commitment to serving others and honoring those who have given their lives in service to their country. Many hospitals make a point of commemorating Memorial Day by recognizing the contributions of these individuals and paying tribute to their dedication and bravery.It’s more important than ever to remember and honor the courageous and heroic men and women of our armed forces who gave their lives in the service of our country and what it stands for.Our respect and gratitude for their sacrifice is an appropriate way to ensure their loss is not forgotten and that their spirit and patriotism lives on in the hearts of their families, their communities and our nation.We at the �� Association, all of our members, and the individuals working in hospitals and health systems across America salute our fallen. We work in health care to help save lives, but we understand firsthand the toll of loss, especially the loss of young lives given in service.In these uncertain times, our men and women in uniform once again stand ready, as they always have, to defend our freedoms and help to safeguard our future.Upon receiving her Angel of Honor Award, Benson’s humble acceptance remarks ring as true as ever — and embody the unquestioned sacrifices our caregivers in uniform have always made to serve and protect the United States of America."None of us deserved medals,” she said. “We just did what millions of Americans did. We worked together, fought together and served together for our nation and for our freedom.”For many, this weekend is a time for rest and relaxation. But please take a moment to also reflect on the devotion of the people that Memorial Day honors and the value — and cost — of our freedom. Fri, 23 May 2025 06:00:00 -0500 Perspective Continuing the Fight to Protect Medicaid and Access to 24/7 Hospital Care for Patients and Communities /news/perspective/2025-05-16-continuing-fight-protect-medicaid-and-access-247-hospital-care-patients-and-communities Three key House committees — Energy and Commerce, Ways and Means, and Agriculture — after long debates and discussions this week advanced their portions of a massive reconciliation bill aimed at realizing President Trump’s legislative agenda.The Energy and Commerce Committee, which was instructed to reduce deficits by $880 billion, approved widespread changes to the Medicaid program that, if enacted, would be a devastating blow to the health and well-being of our nation’s most vulnerable citizens and communities.Many of the policies will not make the Medicaid program work better for the 72 million Americans who rely on it. They include babies and children, people with disabilities, the elderly, and nursing home patients. They also are many hard-working people, including farmers, ranchers, veterans and single moms. In fact, these policies will result in displacing millions of Americans from insured status to uninsured, putting their health and financial stability at serious risk.There is no avoiding the real-life consequences these proposals will create for hospitals’ and health systems’ ability to deliver 24/7 care and services to all patients across the country, not just Medicaid beneficiaries. Some hospitals, especially those in rural or underserved communities, could be forced to close. Many others would have to significantly reduce services. Other impacts could be longer waiting times to receive care, more crowded emergency departments, and hospitals not being able to invest in technology and advancements for clinical care.Earlier this week, we sent a <a href="/system/files/media/file/2025/05/aha-house-statement-on-full-committee-markup-of-budget-reconciliation-text-testimony-5-13-2025.pdf" target="_blank" title="AHA Statement to Energy and Commerce Committee">statement</a> to the Energy and Commerce Committee detailing our position on several provisions included in the legislative package. Specifically, we expressed our concerns that the bill restrains and diminishes provider taxes and state directed payment programs that are vital to the financial stability of hospitals and health systems and help them deliver essential services to Medicaid beneficiaries, since Medicaid historically and chronically underpays for the cost of caring for the millions of Americans that rely on the program. &nbsp;Some politicians and other stakeholders have mislabeled these programs and financing mechanisms as “waste, fraud and abuse.” They are nothing of the sort. The truth is the proposed changes to these programs are not real reform.Most states likely would be unable to close the financing gap created by further limiting their ability to tax providers; as a result, they may need to make significant cuts to their Medicaid programs, including reducing eligibility, eliminating or limiting benefits, and further reducing the chronic Medicaid underpayment rates for providers. In addition, states could address financial losses by limiting or eliminating nonmandatory benefits for all Medicaid beneficiaries, such as prescription drug coverage, clinic services, certain behavioral health services, home and community-based services, and physical and occupational therapy.While the legislation advanced out of committee, it still has a long way to go before crossing the finish line. The full House of Representatives could consider the package as soon as next week. And in the Senate&nbsp;— where some Republicans have already expressed concern about various House proposals&nbsp;— there would likely be changes to the bill should it pass the House.That means that we still have opportunities to influence the debate and the final package.&nbsp;We will continue to work with lawmakers to help them understand the impact these reductions will have on patients and the hospitals that care for them and their communities. Meanwhile, the <a href="https://strengthenhealthcare.org/" target="_blank" title="Coalition to Strengthen America&apos;s Healthcare">Coalition to Strengthen America’s Healthcare</a>, of which the AHA is a founding member, continues to run TV and digital advertisements targeted to key stakeholders. This week, the Coalition launched its <a href="https://strengthenhealthcare.org/new-coalition-ad-mom-highlights-impact-of-medicaid-cuts-on-americas-seniors/" target="_blank" title="Coalition to Strengthen America’s Healthcare newest ad.">newest ad</a> in its Faces of Medicaid campaign, telling the story of a family navigating the threat of limited health care options if Congress decides to make cuts to Medicaid.We appreciate your efforts already in sharing with your lawmakers the negative consequences some of the proposals would have on the patients and communities you serve. It’s more important than ever to continue to share those stories as every vote in the House and Senate matters with slim majorities in both chambers of Congress. And visit AHA’s Action Center <a href="/advocacy/action-center" target="_blank" title="AHA&apos;s Action Center Webpage">webpage</a> for the latest resources to assist your efforts.Tomorrow wraps up <a href="/ahia/get-involved/national-hospital-week" target="_blank" title="National Hospital Week webpage">National Hospital Week</a>. Throughout the week, we have been amplifying stories about the amazing work the women and men of America’s hospitals and health systems do every day to care for patients and support communities. Please take 30 seconds to watch this <a href="/ahia/get-involved/national-hospital-week" target="_blank" title="National Hospital Week Video">video</a> posted on our National Hospital Week page that shares some of this incredible and inspiring work.One simple line from the video says, “People count on us.” That’s a powerful message. And it’s one lawmakers need to hear again and again as they consider changes that could affect hospitals’ ability to provide 24/7 care and services to people and communities across the country.&nbsp; Fri, 16 May 2025 08:18:38 -0500 Perspective