On June 15, Dr. Marcia McNutt, Dr. John Anderson, and Dr. Victor Dzau, presidents of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and National Academy of Medicine, respectively, published a letter whose title says it all: “Let Scientific Evidence Determine Origin of SARS-CoV-2.” This is both a call for scientific equipoise, and a call for those who seek political gain from the dialog to stand down so the tools of science can be applied dispassionately.

Last year’s surge in hospital participation in the Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative was somewhat unexpected by insiders at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI). In fact, a whopping 1,671 health care sites in the United States signed up for IHI’s Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative between March and December of 2020 alone. That amounted to an 85% jump in participation in the program.

This past winter, while the United States and other countries were looking to roll out vaccines and get a leg up on the scourge that had been surging again through the 2020-21 winter, victory was declared in India. What followed were mass migrations from cities to rural areas and several super- spreader events – cricket matches in stadiums, religious festivals, and political rallies during the election month of April – and a surge that saw almost 315,000 cases in a single day (including 4,000 deaths).

Securing adequate payment in the current complex health care environment requires a deep understanding of not only how anesthesiologists are paid but what influences those payments. Through the initiatives under the Payment Progress umbrella, ASA continues to prioritize efforts that support its members and the economic viability of the specialty.