Washington, DC – The United States healthcare system is facing challenges, including healthcare workforce shortages and expanding costs. A powerful solution is the Improving Care and Access to Nurses (ICAN) Act, which will remove practice barriers for advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs), including Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs), also known as nurse anesthesiologists or nurse anesthetists, by allowing them to provide more comprehensive healthcare services to patients across the country.
Along with American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology (AANA), more than 260 healthcare and community organizations, including the American Association of Nurse Practitioners and American Nurses Association, are calling on Congress to pass this important legislation. The ICAN Act follows recommendations from a wide range of nonpartisan healthcare groups, including the National Rural Health Association and AARP.
This legislation will allow CRNAs to order and refer medically necessary services, permanently remove unnecessary physician supervision under Medicare, promote payment parity in the teaching rules, ensure proper reimbursement for CRNAs to provide quality anesthesia and pain management for patients in Medicare, and provide access to CRNA services in Medicaid.
“At a time when patients and consumers are looking to make government more efficient, the ICAN Act provides smart changes to Medicare and Medicaid policy that improve efficiency while simultaneously increasing access to care—a win-win scenario for the healthcare system,” said AANA President Jan Setnor, MSN, CRNA, Col. (Ret), USAFR, NC.
CRNAs are the predominant provider of anesthesia in rural and underserved areas and have full practice authority in all branches of the military as well as in the Indian Health Service and the vast majority of states.
“As a nurse anesthetist and a veteran, I know how important it is that patients have access to timely, high-quality care, and removing these barriers is critical to ensuring that,” Setnor said. “The care that CRNAs provide is foundational to a healthy America and enables access to critical services, including surgical and obstetrical care, particularly in rural and underserved communities. Removing barriers to this care not only increases access but makes the healthcare system more efficient for taxpayers.”
When anesthesia delivery is staffed and directed by CRNAs, costly duplication of services such as supervision is avoided. This delivery model provides healthcare facilities with the flexibility to provide the highest quality care to patients while maximizing limited resources.