Stay in the Fight
AAEM PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Jonathan S. Jones, MD FAAEM
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n the last month or so, I feel like I’ve spent nearly as much time talking with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and various reporters as I have with patients and consultants. I must admit that this did take a little getting used to and at times I was not entirely thrilled to receive word that yet another reporter with yet another news organization wanted an interview for their story on non-competes, and by the way, the deadline is in four hours. However, this is obviously great!
mental health, boarding of patients, staffing levels, or truly any other issue, the single most difficult problem we face is getting our perspective into the public media. Now, at least in regards to non-competes, we have accomplished that. Our strategy is not simply to comment on non-competes, but to parlay this newfound public interest in non-competes into wider awareness of the problem with lack of due process, among others.
[B]igger does not necessarily mean better… [B]etter funded does not mean better. Better means better. An unwavering devotion to both the patient and specialty physician, such as the mission of our Academy, means better.”
This is a sign of progress for the Academy. Ever since the founding of the Academy, the inappropriateness of non-compete clauses in emergency physician contracts has been core to our mission. Now non-physicians care too. It is exciting, energizing, and makes one optimistic. For decades, we have fought to bring issues vital to the sustained practice of emergency medicine into the public sphere. During my time with the Academy, with nearly every discussion involving our core issues, weather it be non-competes, non-physician practitioners, due process, physician oversupply, lack of rigorous residency standards,
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COMMON SENSE MARCH/APRIL 2023
First, some background. While the FTC (and nearly every federal agency) is fairly secretive about the impetus behind their decisions, this non-compete decision didn’t just happen overnight. Way back in December 2020, AAEM, along with multiple other organizations, wrote a letter to President Biden encouraging him to consider opposition to non-compete clauses as a factor in choosing nominations to the FTC. AAEM was the only national medical organization to sign this letter. While I am sure that this one single letter did not influence his administration’s decision, it sure did not hurt. In addition, it also further cemented the fact that
AAEM is the clear expert on this issue amongst medical societies. Then, in April 2022, when the FTC hosted a listening session on the influence of private equity and consolidation in health care, AAEM was well represented with multiple speakers on the topic. We obviously made an impact as in January of this year, the FTC contacted us and asked to arrange a specific follow-up conference to better understand the Academy’s concerns and our suggested interventions and resolutions. We have continued to provide information and commentary since these meetings. Then in February of this year, I participated in an FTC sponsored listening session on their new proposed ban on non-competes. AAEM was the only emergency medicine organization officially represented on the call. The Academy’s official response to the FTC proposal has been submitted and widely publicized to lawmakers and journalists. All information referenced above, including links to the FTC sessions, can be found by visiting our webpage or clicking on the QR code at the end of this article. Following the most recent FTC call, requests for interviews from journalists greatly increased. Many mentioned that AAEM seems to be a leader in opposing non-competes and that they had not previously heard some of our arguments. This is progress. For far too long, journalists simply went to the American Medical Association (which actually supports the presence of non-compete clauses in physician contracts) or to one of the larger subspeciality organizations. At least in relation to emergency medicine, the media finally seem to be realizing that bigger does not necessarily mean better. Likewise, better funded does not mean better. Better means better. An unwavering devotion to both the patient and specialty physician, such as the
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