Bill Would Designate Medicare Rural Emergency Medical Centers

Reps. Lynn Jenkins (R-KS), Ron Kind (D-WI) and Terri Sewell (D-AL) today introduced AHA-supported legislation that would create a new Medicare facility designation to help rural communities maintain access to essential emergency and outpatient services for patients. “The AHA applauds the introduction of the Rural Emergency Medical Center Act of 2018, and will work with Representatives Jenkins, Kind and Sewell to advance this important bipartisan policy to help stabilize access to health care in rural communities,” said AHA Executive Vice President Tom Nickels. “The REMC Act is an important step toward ‘right-sizing’ the health care infrastructure in certain vulnerable communities and ensuring patient access to care: it aligns services and reimbursement with the unique circumstances of providing care in rural communities.” The legislation aligns with the emergency medical services model recommended by the AHA’s Task Force on Ensuring Access in Vulnerable Communities in 2016.