ASA President Participates In White House Health Care Discussion

ASA President Roger A. Moore, M.D., on Wednesday March 25, 2009 participated in a high-level health care reform Summit at the White House, presented as part of an ongoing effort by the Obama Administration to seek input from key stakeholders on health care reform. Participants included representatives from 37 other major national medical specialty societies and health care groups.

The stated goal of the event was to discuss ways to lower health care costs, and improve quality of care while preserving the patients’ ability to have control of their health care options.

During the open discussion, participants engaged in unscripted dialogue related to different facets of health care reform. Dr. Moore highlighted ASA’s leadership in patient care, citing Institute of Medicine (IOM) publications that single out anesthesiologists alone as the leaders in quality and patient safety. Further, he emphasized ASA’s commitment to developing guidelines and practice parameters, and explained the need for adequate resources to ensure that further development ultimately helps patients without stifling physician innovation.

Administration officials leading the event included Ezekiel Emanuel, M.D., Ph.D., Special Advisor for Health Policy at the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB); Robert Kocher, M.D., National Economic Council Special Assistant to the President; and Dora Hughes, M.D., Counselor for Public Health and Science at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

ASA continues to actively engage Congress and the Administration on issues related to health care reform and other priorities specific to anesthesiology. We will closely monitor developments and notify ASA members of developments and opportunities for involvement.