August 2017

As has been extensively covered in the media, the Senate appears to have halted its efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act. While not without its blemishes, the ATS believes that the ACA has been successful in expanding health insurance coverage to millions of Americans, including the patients we serve. Halting legislative efforts to dismantle the ACA is an important policy win for the ATS.

During the congressional debate on ACA repeal and replace, the ATS engaged in a dynamic advocacy campaign that included direct engagement with members of Congress and staff, member action alerts, letters to Congress, tweets and, for the first time in ATS history, a rally of our members on Capitol Hill during the ATS Conference in Washington, DC. Over 170 ATS members advocated directly with their members of Congress at the ATS's March and May Capitol Hill Days. The May Hill Day featured many first-time advocates who were galvanized into action by their deep concern about the impact of potential ACA repeal on their patients.

The ATS would like to thank the many members across the U.S. who responded to our action alerts and advocated for affordable health coverage for our patients. The voices of pulmonary, critical care and sleep physicians and researchers, nurses and patients were heard by Congress and, along with our sister professional and patient organizations, helped prevent passage of legislation that would have been detrimental to our patients and our country.

Your voice helped make a difference!