Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resources and Special Communications

On behalf of our nearly 5,000 member hospitals, health systems and other health care organizations, our clinical partners – including more than 270,000 affiliated physicians, 2 million nurses and other caregivers – and the 43,000 health care leaders who belong to our professional membership groups, the American Hospital Association (AHA) supports the “The Getting Early Treatment and Comprehensive Assessments Reduces Emergencies (GET CARE)” Act.

Patient safety has always been the number one priority for hospitals and health care providers, and COVID-19 has not changed that one bit. In fact, the safety protocols put into place for patients, families, care providers and staff since the pandemic’s onset are the most stringent they’ve ever been. Today, we hear from Dr. Amy Compton-Phillips, Chief Clinical Officer of the Providence health system.

Development of this compendium has been led by a recently formed AHA Board Task Force with input from many members of the association. While it is not intended to be an all-inclusive resource and will evolve over time as we learn more, it provides important questions and checklists to consider moving forward.

Leading healthcare groups convened a summit, “Safe, Effective, and Accessible High-Quality Medicines as a Matter of National Security,” on July 27-31 to examine the resilience of the U.S. pharmaceutical supply chain in light of the current state of global pharmaceutical manufacturing.

The pandemic has given high-risk patients cause for concern about returning to health care providers for routine care. The impact of this medical distancing won’t be fully understood for some time but, in the meantime, hospitals and health care systems face yet another significant hurdle in a year that has been replete with challenges: how to assure patients that returning for needed tests and treatment will be safe.

The attached Excel spreadsheet summarizes state hospital association efforts to secure state CARES funds for hospitals.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) yesterday updated its guidance and frequently asked questions (FAQs) regarding the agency’s request for daily COVID-19-related hospital data reporting. The most notable changes are detailed below, and the updated guidance is effective immediately.

Loretto Hospital, serving Chicago’s Austin community on the city’s West Side, faces growing financial and staffing pressures while delivering care to a majority Black population in a designated COVID-19 hotspot.

The second in the series featured Dr. Estes joined by Dr. David Perlstein, President and CEO of SBH Health System, to discuss how the health system is navigating the COVID-19 crisis in New York. This episode was recorded on Jyuly 30, 2020.

AHA, AMA and ANA release A public service announcement as part of campaign urging the public to wear a mask to help stop the spread of COVID-19.

The need to test for influenza and other respiratory viruses this fall will create an additional burden on the nation’s labs, which continue to struggle to meet the demand for COVID-19 testing.

The AHA and other national organizations representing the nation’s hospitals and health systems today urged congressional leaders not to include in the next COVID-19 relief package any surprise medical billing legislation that could further destabilize hospitals’ finances as they work to recover from an unprecedented public health emergency.

A report released this week aims to assist hospitals in meeting patient care needs during COVID-19 outbreaks.

Curbside check-in and contactless registration protocols put in place during the pandemic by AdventHealth of Altamonte Springs, Fla., is meeting with approval from 95% of patients, the health system reports.

As hospitals prepare for an ongoing influx of patients with COVID-19, an AARP blog urges system leaders to rethink policies that isolate older patients from their caregivers.