AHA Press Releases

WASHINGTON, DC (December 18, 2017) – Bryan Slaba, CEO of Wagner Community Memorial Hospital - Avera in Wagner, S.D., is the 2017 recipient of

The conference report released today has mixed results for the hospitals and health systems we represent and the patients we are privileged to care for.

The AHA is pleased that the Tax Cuts and Job Acts of 2017 Senate bill did not eliminate the tax-exemption for private-activity bonds for not-for-profit hospitals, protecting hospitals' and health systems' access to this vital source of low-cost capital.

Today, the American Hospital Association (AHA), the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and America's Essential Hospitals filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to prevent significant Medicare payment cuts for hospitals that participate in the 340B Drug Pricing Program.

We welcome the nomination of Alex Azar to be Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

In today's rule, CMS finalized a number of policies, including one that will adversely impact patient access to care by reducing Medicare rates for services hospitals provide in new off-campus hospital clinics.

If hospital access to tax-exempt financing is limited or eliminated, hospitals’ ability to make investments in new technologies and renovations in the future will be challenged.

The MACRA Physician Quality Payment Program Final Rule for CY 2018 continues a flexible approach to the MACRA's physician quality payment program urged by hospitals, health systems, and the more than 500,000 employed and contracted physicians with whom they partner to deliver care.

CMS’s decision in today’s rule to cut Medicare payments to hospitals for drugs covered under the 340B program will dramatically threaten access to health care for many patients, including uninsured and other vulnerable populations. It is not based on sound policy and punishes hospitals and patients for participation in a program outside of CMS’s jurisdiction.

The AHA welcomes today’s announcement of a public health emergency for the opioid epidemic and the Administration’s efforts to enhance access to treatment. This declaration appropriately highlights the urgent need to act so that fewer of our fellow citizens are suffering.

The American Hospital Association today released a new analysis showing that providers spend nearly $39 billion a year solely on administrative activities related to regulatory compliance.

Today’s Executive Order will allow health insurance plans that cover fewer benefits and offer fewer consumer protections. No one can predict future health care needs with complete certainty and such plans could put patients at risk when care is needed most.

Contact: Colin Milligan - (202) 638-5491 Jennifer Armstrong Gay - (202) 626-2284

The American Hospital Association (AHA) and AVIA today announced the release of a report summarizing the results of a first-of-its kind survey on the state of digital innovation within hospitals and health systems.

The American Hospital Association (AHA) has elected eight members to its Board of Trustees for three-year terms beginning Jan. 1, 2018.

The AHA continues to have concerns over the accuracy and consistency of the “Worksheet S-10” data that CMS will use to determine the cost of treating uninsured patients.

The Partnership to Amend 42 CFR Part 2, a coalition of over 30 health care organizations committed to helping the country end the opioid crisis, today issued the following statement in response to the introduction of the bipartisan Overdose Prevention and Patient Safety Act, OPPS Act of 2017, H.R 3545, by Congressmen Tim Murphy, PhD. (R-PA) and Earl Blumenauer (D-OR).

The American Hospital Association (AHA) presented two federal hospital leaders with awards recognizing their outstanding service to the health care field.

A new report by Milliman aims to demonstrate the tremendous resources hospitals and health systems put toward anticipating violent events and caring for its victims. Cost estimates are $2.7 billion in 2016.

From the outset of this process, the AHA has remained consistent in our call for the protection of coverage, the protection of the Medicaid program, and the stabilization of the Health Insurance Marketplace.