The Roundtable on Critical Care Policy is a non-profit organization that provides a forum for the nation’s leaders in critical care and public health to advance a common federal policy agenda to improve the quality, delivery and efficiency of critical care in the United States. The Roundtable brings together a broad cross-section of stakeholders, including renowned critical care clinicians, patient groups, academia, public health advocacy interests and industry.
Critical care medicine is primary care for the critically ill patient, whose illnesses or injuries present a significant danger to life, limb, or organ function. Five million Americans will be admitted into intensive care units each year, with the total costs of critical care services in the U.S. exceeding $80 billion annually. The professionals who provide critical care range from physicians and nurses, to respiratory therapists and pharmacists whose specialized training prepares them to care for such severe illnesses and injuries.
Health Affairs Features Roundtable Chairman Dr. Jeffrey E. Grossman's Blog
"A Challenge to Congress: A Critical Care Blueprint"
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. Read more.
May 1, 2012
Roundtable Salutes Critical Care Professionals During Recognition Month
May is National Critical Care Awareness and Recognition Month (NCCARM) and the Roundtable on Critical Care Policy joins the critical care professional and scientific societies in commending the dedicated professionals who care for our nation’s critically ill and injured patients and their families.
These doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists and pharmacists, among others, provide care to nearly five million Americans admitted into traditional, surgical, pediatric or neo-natal intensive care units (ICUs) each year. Designating a month to increase awareness of critical care provides an important opportunity to inform policymakers, hospitals administrators, friends, family and the public about the significant role critical care medicine and its providers plays in delivering high quality health care. NCCARM also provides an opportunity for these dedicated professionals to become involved in developing solutions to address inefficiencies in the current critical care delivery system—from inadequate disaster preparedness, to challenges in providing appropriate care at the end of a patient’s life, to a nationwide workforce shortage of critical care practitioners.
Indeed, a recent report issued by the Society of Critical Care Medicine shows that the proportion of federally funded research dollars spent on critical care is significantly lower than the percentage of dollars spent delivering that care. What is more, ongoing drug shortages of vital medications—many of which are commonly used to care for critically ill and injured patients—and a demand for intensivists on pace to outstrip supply by 22% in 2020 continue to hinder the delivery of critical care in the United States.
The critical care community must continue to work together raise awareness of challenges facing the critical care delivery system and remain focused and coordinated to advance needed policy solutions, such as those included in the Critical Care Assessment and Improvement Act of 2011 (H.R. 971). This bipartisan legislation advances a much-needed comprehensive critical care agenda in Congress by calling for an evaluation of the current U.S. critical care delivery system, and creating a critical care coordinating council within NIH that would facilitate information sharing and coordination of critical care research projects, as well as raise awareness of the research amongst the critical care community.
Congressional actions to address growing budget deficits, the upcoming ruling by the Supreme Court on the Affordable Care Act, and a 2012 general election could reshape the foundation upon which the current healthcare research, delivery and payment system has been built. With such potentially significant changes looming in the months ahead, now more than ever, the critical care community must be prepared to react to the changing landscape to ensure that the critical care system is prioritized in these key national policy discussions.
The Roundtable on Critical Care Policy salutes the professionals and organizations dedicated to the care of the critically ill and injured.
Critical Care Medicine & Drug Shortages
With reports of dozens of medically important drugs being in short supply over the past year, the Roundtable has been working to raise awareness amongst policymakers about the impact of these shortages on the nation’s critically ill and injured patients and the care providers treating them.
According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the number of shortages for medically necessary drugs has tripled in the last six years—jumping from 61 products in 2005 to 178 in 2010. In testimony before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions (HELP) this past December, an FDA official stated that “The rising trend of drug shortages has continued into 2011, with 220 shortages tracked by FDA from January through October.” That same month, the Roundtable’s Outcomes & Innovation Working Group conducted an analysis of the FDA’s drug shortage list, determining that ICUs currently face shortages of at least 30 generic drugs that are commonly used to care for critically ill and injured patients.
To help further illustrate the unique impact of these shortages on ICU patients and the importance of the nation’s critical care providers having access to necessary medications during what may be a patient’s most vulnerable time, the Roundtable interviewed Outcomes & Innovation Working Group member Dr. Roy Brower, Medical Director of the Medical Intensive Care Unit at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, and a Professor of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
Below are links to few more clips from our session during which Dr. Brower discusses his personal experiences with these drug shortages and their impact on critical care.
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. 