Trump Sworn In, Second Round of Confirmation Hearings Begin This Week
For questions or concerns on these or other advocacy issues, contact the Office of Government Relations at dc@aaos.org.
 
Trump Inaugurated as 45th President On January 20, 2017, Donald Trump, a New York Republican, was sworn in by Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. as the 45th president of the United States. Mike Pence, an Indiana Republican, was sworn in that day as vice president. President Trump used his inauguration address to further his campaign messages that both political parties have lost their way and that America must come first.

“Today, we are not merely transferring power from one administration to another, or from one party to another, but we are transferring power from Washington, DC, and giving it back to you, the people,” he said. “For too long, a small group in our nation’s capital has reaped the rewards of government while the people have borne the cost… Politicians prospered, but the jobs left and the factories closed.” Click here to read more.

We’re adding something NEW to the A Nation In Motion® campaign—Communities in Motion
During the 2017 Annual Meeting, the Academy will be launching a new section of its Orthopaedic Public Awareness Campaign site, ANationInMotion.org, called Communities in Motion. The site will feature a virtual park with stations for different patient-friendly, bone and joint health educational materials, including animated graphics with exercises to strengthen different parts of the body.

As orthopaedists, you know that obesity negatively impacts the bones and joints and because getting started is often the hardest part, many patients get discouraged when they don’t have guidance.  The Academy created Communities in Motion to empower children and families to take control of their musculoskeletal health. Our goal is to show that people of all ages and abilities can have fun and exercise together to build stronger bones for life.

Come preview this resource The Academy will create a 3D replica of the virtual park at the San Diego Convention Center, in the Ballroom 6 Lobby, Level 2, outside of the Sails Pavilion during the week of the Academy’s Annual Meeting, March 14-18. For more information contact AAOS Director, Public Relations, Melissa Leeb at leeb@aaos.org.
Senators Question HHS Nominee On January 18, 2016, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a courtesy hearing on the nomination of Rep. Tom Price (R-GA) to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) said Dr. Price was an excellent nominee and commented that the Affordable Care Act should be repealed and replaced simultaneously and concurrently as President Trump and Speaker Paul Ryan have also suggested. Click here to read more.
House Passes Sports Medicine Licensure Clarity Act The House of Representatives on January 9 passed four Energy and Commerce Committee bills to improve public health, including H.R. 302, the Sports Medicine Licensure Clarity Act. All four of the bills considered by the House of Representatives today previously passed the House in the 114th Congress by voice vote.

“These bipartisan bills mark a strong start to the new year,” said Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR). By picking up where we left off on important measures to better coordinate care and clarify existing law, we’re one step closer to seeing these bills become law and making improvements to public health.” Click here to read more.
House Passes Obamacare Repeal Resolution, Efforts Continue Earlier this month, the House passed a budget resolution that gives Congress a start on some legislative tools to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Legislators voted largely along party lines with just nine Republicans joining Democrats to oppose the measure. Concerns centered on the budget’s spending levels as well as the plan to repeal the law without having a strategy to replace it (read “ACA Repeal Talks Continue” in last week’s issue of Advocacy Now online here). Still, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) assured Republicans that they would develop a strategy at the joint House-Senate GOP retreat in Philadelphia this week. Click here to read more.
State Corner: The State of Visiting Team Physician Legislation in the States Sports medicine professionals are responsible for the organization, management and provision of care for athletes in individual, team, and mass participation sporting events. Oftentimes, these professionals travel with the athletes across state lines. Out-of-state athletic team medical staff may not be able to treat players and others because they lack a license in the visiting state. In these circumstances, the sports medicine professional must choose between treating injured athletes at great professional risk or handing over the care of an injured player to another professional who is not familiar with the individual’s medical history. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), on both a state and federal level, is trying to fix this. Click here to read more.
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What We’re Reading

OP Senators Debut Health Plan with State Option to Keep ACA Exchanges, Morning Consult, 1/23/17 Putting Patients Back in Control of Healthcare, Washington Examiner, 1/23/17 Aetna Faces Slim Chance of Winning Appeal of Decision to Block Humana Merger, Modern Healthcare, 1/23/17 Trump’s Health Plan Would Convert Medicaid to Block Grants, Aide Says, The New York Times, 1/22/17 Trump May Not Enforce Individual Health Insurance Mandate, Reuters, 1/22/17 GOP Waiting to Hear from Trump on Obamacare, The Hill, 1/21/17 Trump Issues Executive Order Scaling Back Parts of Obamacare, The New York Times, 1/20/17 Donald Trump Is Expected to Move Quickly to Start Regulatory Rollback, The Wall Street Journal, 1/19/17 GOP Governors Pitch Medicaid Reforms as Cornyn Pledges No Coverage Losses, Morning Consult, 1/19/17 NIH Director Francis Collins to Stay in His Post For Now, The Washington Post, 1/19/17 Will Open Payments Be a Casualty of the ACA Repeal? Modern Healthcare, 1/19/17 Key Republicans at Tom Price Hearing Still Wary on Health Law Repeal, The Wall Street Journal, 1/18/17 Trump Vows Insurance for Everybody in Obamacare Replacement Plan, The Washington Post, 1/15/17