A new ACEP-developed bipartisan bill to address the boarding crisis has been introduced in the House of Representatives, with a Senate companion soon to follow. This important legislation is a direct result of ACEP advocacy and the latest in a series of major ACEP initiatives to address the boarding crisis.
Advocating for the Addressing Boarding and Crowding in the ED (ABC-ED) Act was a central part of this year’s Leadership and Advocacy Conference (LAC). Now is the time to build off the LAC momentum and call for the prompt passage of this bill into law.
Urge Your Legislator to Support the ABC-ED Act
"Boarding in the emergency department is a national public health crisis that puts patient lives at risk and strains emergency physicians and care teams every day. We are deeply grateful to Dr. Joyce and Rep. Dingell for their partnership and leadership on this priority issue. The ABC-ED Act will provide dangerous delays, and improving the flow of patients through the emergency care continuum."
Alison Haddock, MD, FACEP, president of ACEP
This bill:
- Utilizes public health data modernization grants to support development and implementation of real-time, state- or region-wide hospital bed tracking and hospital capacity management systems with a focus on addressing boarding.
- Supports innovative care models through Medicare pilot programs—focused on improving geriatric emergency care and psychiatric emergency care, increasing bilateral communication and improving coordinated care.
- Commissions a GAO study to identify best practices for hospital capacity tracking and its effect on boarding, wait times, and EMS offload delays.
Together we are making a difference. A comprehensive multi-year ACEP advocacy campaign to address boarding includes encouraging changes to the Leapfrog hospital survey, tying boarding-related attestations to hospital performance measures, the stakeholder summit convened by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality that ACEP advocacy made possible, developing and informing multiple legislative efforts, and amplifying the steady drumbeat of emergency physician and patient concerns through studies, surveys, sharing your stories, and more.
ACEP is incredibly proud to support a broad range of emergency physician-led initiatives that drive the collaborative systemwide effort necessary to tackle the boarding crisis.
Related:
AHRQ Report Highlights Emergency Physician Leadership on Boarding Solutions
