The Association of Medical Device Reprocessors, AMDR, congratulates members of the new Bipartisan Health Care Innovation Caucus.  The March 15 announcement regarding the creation of the Caucus indicates the group will “encourage innovative policy ideas to improve quality of care and lower costs for consumers.”  The American Hospital Association and others have come out in support.  Dr. Ami Bera (D-CA) notes that, “as a doctor, I know that healthcare is rapidly changing and it’s important Congress understands new innovations and ideas that can improve patients’ lives and lower costs…..The Health Care Innovation Caucus will provide a bipartisan space for these important conversations.  I am glad to join my colleagues in this effort to accelerate promising strategies to improve the health care system and ensure patients have access to cutting edge innovation.”
AMDR and its members play a crucial role in helping hospitals achieve the triple aim of increasing quality, reducing costs and improving patient care.  Use of regulated reprocessed SUDs ensures the highest possible quality, and lowers overall cost per device use, thereby enabling hospitals to access new technologies and serve a growing patient population.  Reprocessing is an existing solution that allows hospitals to extend the value of their existing medical device inventory. Even so, hospitals administrators, doctors and nurses are often hamstrung in their efforts to fully maximize reprocessing programs by special interest groups and manufacturers alike.
We hope, with our allies in the healthcare delivery community, to meet with Members of this new Healthcare Innovation Caucus to demonstrate the value of medical device reprocessing to also ‘improve the health care system and ensure patients have access to cutting edge innovation’.