Emergency Medicine Workforce Committee
Who We Are
The AAEM EM Workforce Committee is one of the most active committees of AAEM. They are actively engaged in advocacy issues that speak to the mission of AAEM and affect EM physicians on a daily basis. The work of this committee impacts the environment of emergency medicine for our residents as they graduate.
Committee Goals
- Evaluate the impact of non-physician practitioners (NPPs) in emergency medicine, which includes the following:
- Work with AAEM/RSA and AAEM state and regional chapter divisions to track how many of our members are affected by the NPP independent practice movement.
- Be a resource for members on scope of practice creep.
- Work with individual state legislators and AAEM advocacy to encourage members to engage with state medical societies on scope of practice issues and encourage individuals to act on state legislation bills.
- Continue to evaluate the impact of the growth of EM residency programs and NPP programs on the emergency medicine workforce.
- Advocate for our members who are being replaced by NPPs.
- Work alongside all stakeholders to promote physician-led, team-based emergency medical care and promote legislation and rulings that allow for transparency and accuracy of terminology so every patient knows who is providing his/her care.
Leadership
Joshua T. Bucher, MD FAAEM
Chair
Deborah D. Fletcher, MD FAAEM
Vice Chair
Vicki Norton, MD FAAEM
Board Liaison
Elizabeth Mueller
Staff Liaison
Our Projects
APP or the EM Workforce Concern Form
If you are an AAEM member and wish to submit a question or concern for the AAEM EM Workforce Committee to review, please use this form. Concerns regarding the unsupervised practice of non-physician practitioner (NPP) programs (NPPs) or the replacement of physicians by NPPs may be submitted for review.
Submit Your Concern
Who is Treating Your Emergency?
Download the infographic below.
Download Infographic
Statements
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AAEM Letter in Response to the Wall Street Journal’s Article Entitled ‘The Biden ‘Strike Force’ Is Coming for You’
Re: The Biden ‘Strike Force’ Is Coming for You (March 6, 2024) As a practicing Emergency Physician and President of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM), I am disappointed at the immediate and misinformed response from this publication to the announcement that the Federal Trade Commission, Department of Justice, and Department of Health and […] -
Statement on Scheduling Recommendations During Pregnancy, the Postpartum Period, and Parental Leave
The following statement was created by the AAEM Young Physicians (YPS-AAEM) and Women in Emergency Medicine (WiEM-AAEM) Sections. It was approved by the American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM) Board of Directors on Thursday, February 22, 2024. Background: Emergency physicians work in hospital settings that provide patient care at all hours of the day, which […] -
2024 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Coalition Letter
Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Minority Leader McConnell, Speaker Johnson, and Minority Leader Jeffries: On behalf of the 54 organizations representing physicians and other health care providers across the United States, we write to urge Congress to stop the 3.4% cut in Medicare physician payment that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently finalized […] -
Statement in Response to the FTC Suing Private Equity Backed Anesthesia Staffing Firm
On September 21, 2023, The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that they filled suit against private-equity backed, physician-staffing company U.S. Anesthesia Partners, Inc. (USAP) in Texas. The FTC’s complaint alleges that USAP and Welsh Carson’s “multi-year anticompetitive scheme to consolidate anesthesia practices in Texas, drive up the price of anesthesia services provided to Texas patients, […] -
AAEM Letter in Support of the FTC Proposed Rule to Ban Noncompete Clauses
The American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM) fully supports the Federal Trade Committee’s (FTC) proposed rule to ban noncompete clauses and appreciates the opportunity to comment. AAEM is the specialty society for board-certified emergency physicians, representing over 8,000 members across the nation. We enthusiastically agree with the FTC that the freedom to change jobs is […] -
AAEM Statement on the Corporate Practice of Medicine
The prohibition on the corporate practice of medicine is intended to prevent non-physicians from interfering with or influencing the physician’s professional judgment*. The intent is to keep the business interest out of the patient-physician relationship. In Emergency Medicine the need for these controls is heightened as we encounter vulnerable patients who may not have adequate […] -
Letter to Wellstar Health System CEO: Not Enforcing Non-Compete Clause in Contracts as they Prepare to Close
Dear Ms. Saunders, On behalf of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM), we write in support of Senator Warnock’s letter to encourage you to remove the non-compete clauses within physician contracts due to the closing of Wellstar Health System. AAEM is the specialty society of board-certified emergency physicians representing over 8,000 members. The Academy […] -
Transparency of Billing for Emergency Care
The American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM) believes that emergency department (ED) physicians should have timely and unencumbered access to services collected in their name. The code of federal regulations (CFR) §424.80 mandates that, in such circumstances when a physician assigns the responsibility of billing (e.g. to an employer, external vendor) for reimbursable services rendered […] -
Statement from the EMSS-AAEM Council in response to the National Registry of EMT Eligibility Requirements
The American Academy of Emergency Medicine Emergency Medical Services Section (EMSS-AAEM) strongly opposes the proposed changes to the current National Registry of EMTs (NREMT) accreditation requirements. The current proposal, as written, would allow state agencies to determine eligibility criteria for NREMT certification. These state agencies would not be required to follow any nationally approved standards, […] -
Joint Statement Against Criminalization of Medical Errors
Like all members of the medical community, we at the American College of Medical Toxicology, American Academy of Emergency Medicine, and American Academy of Clinical Toxicology were saddened to learn of the tragic death of a patient in Tennessee due to a medical error. A nurse at Vanderbilt University Medical Center mistakenly administered a drug […]
Common Sense Articles
- ‘Tis the Season… by Julie Vieth, MBChB FAAEM, November/December 2021
- Take Medicine Back: A New Emergency Medicine Application, July/August 2022
How to Join
If you are interested in joining our committee, apply today!
Apply to Join a CommitteeAppointments are confirmed on a quarterly basis (January, April, July, October).