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Government Grand Rounds: Culture of engagement
Welcome back to Government Grand Rounds, where the Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) Advocacy Council discusses how sustained advocacy engagement is important for all SVS members. While “advocacy” continues to rank high among SVS member priorities, many remain unsure how…
New SVS series zeroes in on government’s impact on vascular surgery
Starting next month, the Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) will begin a series of articles focusing on how the actions of Congress and regulatory agencies affect vascular surgeons and the patients they serve, and importantly, how sustained advocacy engagement is…
Medicare payments: Congress fails to #StopTheFullCut
Despite intense pressure from the entire healthcare provider community, Congress failed to include provisions in its year-end legislative package to fully prevent Medicare payment cuts that took effect Jan. 1. The package—negotiated by congressional leadership—includes adjustments for the Medicare Conversion…
‘Week of Action’ raises awareness of SVS advocacy activities
From sending emails to lawmakers, posting on social media to amplify legislative issues, and donating to the Society for Vascular Surgery Political Action Committee (SVS PAC), SVS members embraced a variety of activities to support the Society’s first-ever Advocacy “Week…
SVS launches program to ‘REACH 535’ lawmakers
To leverage the power of direct engagement with lawmakers on the part of constituents, the SVS advocacy team is launching a grassroots advocacy plan to help foster this direct communication between SVS members and their federal lawmakers. The program will…
SVS addresses pair of critical payment-related proposed rules
In July, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released two critical payment-related proposed rules for CY2023—the highly anticipated Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) Proposed Rule followed by the Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Ambulatory Surgical…
SVS’ AMA membership push aimed at safeguarding vascular surgery voice on coding issues
The Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) is urging members to join the American Medical Association (AMA) in a bid to maintain a critical voice in the decision-making process for the specialty. The reason is simple: Unless the percentage of dual…
SVS PAC: A voice for vascular surgeons on Capitol Hill
As everyone turned the page on 2021 and entered 2022 with a new hope for a return to normalcy, vascular surgeons continue to be at the forefront of the fight to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Our days and nights are…
‘Disproportionate decrease’: Vascular surgeons see buying power fall, study finds
Inflation-adjusted Medicare reimbursement rates for the 20 most common vascular surgical procedures decreased by more than 20% in the last decade, a new analysis found. The study, which looked the buying power of vascular surgeons, uncovered data showing an unadjusted…
VAM: SVS PAC donors to be recognized at VAM
The SVS Political Action Committee (PAC) is critically important for our voices to be heard in the places where policies that affect all of our practices are being made. The PAC’s role is one of advocacy and influence—to educate Congress…