Adventist Health Care Systems Open New Office in Washington, D.C.
31 January 2019 | Five US-based Adventist health care systems opened a new office in Washington, D.C., to represent over 90 hospitals and 350 other provider organizations, including associated medical groups, nursing homes, outpatient centers and home care entities.
A news story from the North American Division of the Adventist denomination reported that the Adventist Health Policy Association (AHPA) advocates among lawmakers for policies that help member entities provide high quality, accessible care.
According to a FierceHealthcare article, the newly-appointed AHPA president, Carlyle Walton, said that AHPA “is building up the first Washington policy shop and establishing a stronger national voice for the faith-based nonprofits among federal agencies and congressional offices.”
Walton, who previously served as CEO of Metroplex Health System, which is part of AdventHealth (formerly Adventist Health System), said that “For the first time, the board of directors, which comprises our health system CEOs, has decided that in order to have the impact they envision on a national level, it is important for AHPA to have a presence in Washington, D.C. and a laser-focused objective of impacting the federal agenda.”
AHPA will focus on three to five issues each year representing areas in which members have common interests. According to the FierceHealthcare article, AHPA focus areas will include evidence-based policies “that promote human wholeness” and the process of moving toward value-based care. An example of this is AHPA’s support for recent opioid legislation that allows for better prevention and treatment.
The Adventist health care systems represented by AHPA are AdventHealth, Adventist Health, Adventist HealthCare, Kettering Health Network, and Loma Linda University Health.
