Press & Releases

Roundtable Releases

Senate Moves Closer to Bipartisan Passage of Bill Prioritizing Critical Care Planning

December 14, 2011-- The Roundtable on Critical Care Policy today praised Senate leaders of pandemic preparedness reauthorizing legislation for including critical care as an essential component of national preparedness. “This morning, the Senate brought us another step closer to enacting the first piece of legislation that would prioritize critical care in federal disasters efforts,” said Roundtable Board Member Dr. Brad Poss.  Poss, a pediatric critical care specialist and Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Kansas School of Medicine in Wichita, noted that it has taken the Roundtable on Critical Care Policy since 2009 to secure language in federal pandemic preparedness laws to recognize the important role of critical care in federal health care delivery and in the delivery of care during a disaster.  “Nearly five million critically ill and injured Americans depend on the critical care delivery system each year, yet capacity is often stretched to its limits.  We must address the uniquely important challenges and needs of our critical care infrastructure so that we are truly prepared for the possibility of a national health emergency,” Poss said. Read more.

House Passes PAHPA Bill with Roundtable-Endorsed Critical Care Provisions

December 6, 2011-- A bipartisan effort aimed at prioritizing critical care into the nation’s emergency planning unanimously passed the United States House of Representatives today. The Pandemic and All- Hazards Preparedness Reauthorization Act of 2011 (H.R. 2405), introduced by Congressman Mike Rogers (R-MI), would bolster the nation’s ability to respond to a public health emergency and would, among other things, reauthorize key components of the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPA) of 2006. The critical care provisions were endorsed by the Roundtable on Critical Care Policy.  Read more.

Key Critical Care Provisions Approved by House Committee

July 28, 2011 -- The House Energy & Commerce Committee this morning overwhelmingly approved the bipartisan Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Reauthorization Act of 2011 (H.R. 2405), which would protect against pandemics and attacks by reauthorizing programs that provide key resources to states, health departments and hospitals to reinforce preparedness efforts. The bill, introduced by Congressman Mike Rogers (R-MI), also incorporates provisions endorsed by the Roundtable to enhance the nation’s ability to care for the critically ill and injured in the aftermath of a public health emergency. Read more.

House Bipartisan Proposal Calls for Needed Evaluation of U.S. Critical Care Delivery System

March 9, 2011 -- This morning, Representatives Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Erik Paulsen (R-MN) introduced bipartisan legislation to identify gaps and improve coordination in the delivery of critical care health services in the United States. The Critical Care Assessment and Improvement Act of 2011 transcends the current political climate on Capitol Hill and stands out among few legislative initiatives in the 112^th Congress to address health care in a bipartisan fashion.  Read more.

Legislation Introduced to Bolster U.S. Critical Care System

September 30, 2010 --Late yesterday, House Energy and Commerce Committee Member Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) introduced legislation to assess and strengthen the delivery and coordination of critical care health services in the United States.  The Critical Care Assessment and Improvement Act of 2010 (H.R. 6306) calls for a much-needed evaluation of the current state of the U.S. critical care medical delivery system and the implementation of policies to improve the quality and effectiveness of care delivered to the critically ill and injured. Read more.

Press

Health Affairs Features Roundtable Chairman Dr. Jeffrey E. Grossman’s  Blog: “A Challenge to Congress: A Critical Care Blueprint” 

March 17, 2011 -- While Congress’ recent efforts to repeal the healthcare reform legislation signed by President Obama last year may have been ‘dead on arrival,’ efforts to dismantle the bill continue, and likely will for months to come. Rather than simply repeat the same battles again and again, legislators on both sides of the aisle might also take the opportunity to consider what was missed when the law was enacted. The Affordable Care Act did much to focus on the need for national policy improvements in primary, preventive and chronic care, but far too little to address the challenges that persist for the roughly five million Americans each year who, due to critical illness or injury, require intensive and expensive care, typically in one of the country’s most sophisticated inpatient facilities. Care for the critically ill consumes some $80 billion a year, or about one percent of U.S. GDP. Real health care reform cannot occur without reforming the critical care deliverysystem. Read more.

InsideHealthPolicy.com: Bipartisan Bill Addresses Gaps in Critical Care

March 9, 2011 -- A new bipartisan bill looks to address gaps in critical care research, develop new practices for ICU evacuations and force HHS to assess the availability of critical care practitioners in the federal government's medical response teams. Read more.

Miklwaukee News Buzz: The New Front on Health Care Reform

October 6, 2010-- Wisconsin Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin is a leader in the effort to reopen the national health care debate in the arena of critical care – emergency or life-sustaining care provided in emergency rooms or intensive care units. The effort is led by a national panel of specialists and advocates, the Roundtable on U.S. Critical Care Policy. A lobbying firm employed by the group says its members formed in part because they felt critical care was overlooked in the reform of America’s health care system. Read more.