ACOG Statement on CMS Removal of Burdensome Regulatory Requirements

Washington, DC—Ted L. Anderson, MD, PhD, president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), issued the following statement regarding the new rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) removing regulations that required ambulatory surgical centers to have written hospital transfer agreements or that required that all physicians performing surgery in an ambulatory surgical center have admitting privileges in a hospital:

"ACOG commends CMS for improving patients’ access to surgical care by removing medically unnecessary, burdensome regulatory requirements for ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs). ACOG agrees with CMS that existing laws and regulations already ensure patient safety and that the requirements were limiting access to care. Moreover, these requirements represented an inefficient use of health care dollars and created administrative barriers to efficient ASC operations.

“In fact, ACOG has continuously advocated for the removal of similar burdensome regulatory requirements for medical facilities. The patient-physician relationship is best protected when politicians and regulators refrain from imposing unjustified requirements on health care providers. Bureaucratic hurdles that provide no benefit to patients and that impose administrative burdens on doctors impede the provision of evidence-based care. ACOG is pleased that CMS has taken measures to allow more medical facilities to keep their doors open to patients. We will continue to support policies that advance patient access to care and to oppose unnecessary, unjustified regulatory restrictions that impede care.”

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) is the nation’s leading group of physicians providing health care for women. As a private, voluntary, nonprofit membership organization of more than 58,000 members, ACOG strongly advocates for quality health care for women, maintains the highest standards of clinical practice and continuing education of its members, promotes patient education, and increases awareness among its members and the public of the changing issues facing women’s health care. www.acog.org