Healthcare Reform Seen as Unparalleled Opportunity for EMS

From JEMS:

The landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) could become a watershed moment for EMS, according to number of EMS leaders. The five-to-four decision by the justices may open the door for the kind of opportunities to deliver patient care outside the narrow confines of the traditional prehospital emergency system. The question now is: “How will we step up and define how our organizations move forward?”

Guidelines Released For Prescribing Narcotics In Emergency Rooms

From CBS Pittsburgh:

Abuse of prescription pain killers has been a growing problem. It’s now the leading cause of accidental death – more than even car accidents.

With this in mind, the American College of Emergency Physicians came out with a policy statement about appropriate prescribing guidelines for narcotic pain medicine in the E.R.

“So many narcotic prescriptions and opioid prescriptions are given in emergency departments they wanted to make sure we had some guidelines,” Dr. Thomas Campbell with Allegheny General Hospital’s emergency room, said.