Emergency Action Fund

What is the Washington State Emergency Medicine Action Fund?

Washington has waged an assault on the practice of emergency medicine in the state. We are working to fight these attacks, but the reality is that this is often a costly and contentious process. With the recent challenges from the Medicaid ED Visit Limit, which is expected to remove $72 million in funding from emergency rooms across the state, the need for an action fund was realized. The Washington Chapter of ACEP is working to establish the Washington State Emergency Medicine Action Fund and work with other like minded organizations to develop it into an effective advocacy tool, as well as using the fund to challenge the Medicaid ED Visit Limit.

Purpose

Unlike Political Action Committees (PACs), the Washington State Emergency Medicine Action Fund can work on regulatory and legal actions. Contributions can be used to help in the implementation of regulatory changes and challenge rules or policies that are inappropriately developed.

Participation

It is our goal that all practicing ED groups in the state contribute based on their volume. We are asking for a contribution of five (5) cents per chart based on 2010 visit numbers. For example, if you see 20,000 patients per year, you would donate $1,000. A target of $100,000 per year is our goal for contributions, given the potentially costly litigation over the Medicaid ED Visit Limit.

For those groups restricted from such contributions, i.e. WA state employees, we ask for a personal contribution. The average cost should be between $100-$200 per practitioner.

WA/ACEP has contributed $10,000 to the Washington State Emergency Medicine Action Fund to date.

Governance

The Washington State Emergency Medicine Action Fund will be overseen by the Board of Directors of the Washington Chapter of ACEP. A task force, consisting of all Chapter Officers and three designated board members, has been established to administer the fund. This task force will closely monitor the Medicaid ED Visit Limit policy, meet to discuss pertinent developments, and communicate with the membership and other stakeholders on important topics.