The Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) board of trustees has unanimously approved the formation of Heart Rhythm Advocates—a new, shared-vision, cause-related non-profit 501(c)(4) advocacy organisation to complement the primary 501(c)(3) non-profit structure of the HRS.
According to the HRS, this announcement comes at a time when atrial fibrillation (AF) is on the rise, affecting more than 10.5 million Americans. A growing patient population, increase in electrophysiology procedures, and rapid innovation in the field, have led to elevated government scrutiny on cost, resulting in drastic cuts to reimbursement for common AF procedures in the USA.
“Reductions in reimbursement are making it difficult to retain and attract heart rhythm specialists,” a HRS press release notes. “Without enough trained cardiac electrophysiologists, patients with heart rhythm disorders will be at a greater risk of limited access to quality care.”
Under its previous structure, the HRS led numerous efforts to protect fair reimbursement for AF ablation, gain approval for pulsed field ablation (PFA) codes, and include ambulatory surgery centres for coverage. The establishment of Heart Rhythm Advocates allows for greater lobbying influence and political activity for the benefit of both patients and HRS members, the recent release adds.
Having gained more than 45 years of experience in advocating for the cardiac electrophysiology specialty, the HRS will be providing US$1,000,000 in initial funding to establish its new advocacy arm.
“Heart Rhythm Advocates offers a powerful way to further strengthen [the] HRS’ leadership and commitment to serving as the unified voice of electrophysiology,” said HRS president Kenneth Ellenbogen (Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, USA). “This new entity will allow us to expand our impact and support everyone in the electrophysiology community—starting with physicians and their patients. By taking this big step forward, and with the continued support of our members and patients, we will accelerate Heart Rhythm Advocates’ ability to influence reimbursement and healthcare policies for the current and future generations of electrophysiologists.”
The formation of Heart Rhythm Advocates will allow HRS to better address the needs of US members and their patients, without compromising the society’s global mission of ending death and suffering due to heart rhythm disorders, the release continues. By establishing a new entity solely focused on advocating for electrophysiologists—and all of the specialty’s stakeholders—the HRS has further strengthened the organisation’s dual focus of advancing knowledge and driving innovation.
