The Improving Trauma Care Act of 2014 (; ) is a bill that would amend the

Public Health Service Act The Public Health Service Act is a United States federal law enacted in 1944. The full act is codified in Title 42 of the United States Code (The Public Health and Welfare), Chapter 6A (Public Health Service). Contents The act clearly establis ...

, with respect to trauma care and research programs, to include in the definition of "trauma" an

injury An injury is any physiological damage to living tissue caused by immediate physical stress. An injury can occur intentionally or unintentionally and may be caused by blunt trauma, penetrating trauma, burning, toxic exposure, asphyxiation, o ...

resulting from extrinsic agents other than mechanical force, including those that are thermal, electrical, chemical, or radioactive. The bill was introduced into the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

during the

113th United States Congress The 113th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, from January 3, 2013, to January 3, 2015, during the fifth and sixth years of Presidency of Barack Obama, Barack Obama's presiden ...

. Similar legislation, , was introduced in the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

by Senator Jack Reed (D-RI).

Background

is the damage to a biological

organism In biology, an organism () is any living system that functions as an individual entity. All organisms are composed of cells (cell theory). Organisms are classified by taxonomy into groups such as multicellular animals, plants, and ...

caused by physical harm.

Major trauma Major trauma is any injury that has the potential to cause prolonged disability or death. There are many causes of major trauma, blunt and penetrating, including falls, motor vehicle collisions, stabbing wounds, and gunshot wounds. Dependin ...

that can potentially lead to serious outcomes. For research purposes the definition is often based on an injury severity score (ISS) of greater than 15.

Provisions of the bill

''This summary is based largely on the summary provided by the

Congressional Research Service The Congressional Research Service (CRS) is a public policy research institute of the United States Congress. Operating within the Library of Congress, it works primarily and directly for members of Congress and their committees and staff on a c ...

, a

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...

source.'' The Improving Trauma Care Act of 2014 would amend the

, with respect to trauma care and research programs, to include in the definition of "trauma" an

resulting from extrinsic agents other than mechanical force, including those that are thermal, electrical, chemical, or radioactive.

Congressional Budget Office report

''This summary is based largely on the summary provided by the Congressional Budget Office, as ordered reported by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on April 3, 2014. This is a

source.'' H.R. 3548 would amend the Public Health Service Act to revise the definition of trauma as it applies to grants and activities authorized to provide support for trauma and emergency care. Under current law, the definition of trauma means an injury resulting from exposure to a mechanical force. The bill would expand the definition of trauma to also include an injury resulting from exposure to an extrinsic agent that is thermal, electrical, chemical, or radioactive. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that implementing the legislation would have no significant effect on the federal budget. Enacting H.R. 3548 would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. The bill would not impose intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA''(pdf)https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-1995-title2/html/USCODE-1995-title2-chap25.htm (text)] restricts the federal government of the United States, federal imposition of unfunded mandates on ...

and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.

Procedural history

The Improving Trauma Care Act of 2014 was introduced into the

on November 20, 2013 by Bill Johnson (Ohio politician), Rep. Bill Johnson (R, OH-6). It was referred to the

United States House Committee on Energy and Commerce The Committee on Energy and Commerce is one of the oldest standing committees of the United States House of Representatives. Established in 1795, it has operated continuously—with various name changes and jurisdictional changes—for more tha ...

and the United States House Energy Subcommittee on Health. On May 20, 2014, the bill was reported (amended) alongsid
House Report 113-458
The House voted on June 24, 2014 to pass the bill in a

voice vote In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by responding vo ...

. The

voted on July 31, 2014 to pass with bill with unanimous consent and it was signed into law on August 8, 2014 by President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

Debate and discussion

The American Burn Association, the

American Association for the Surgery of Trauma American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

, the American College of Emergency Physicians,

America's Essential Hospitals America's Essential Hospitals (formerly the National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems) is an industry trade group that represents more than 300 hospitals that fill a safety net role in their communities. The association, a nonprof ...

, the

American College of Surgeons The American College of Surgeons is an educational association of surgeons created in 1913.American College of Surgeons Online "What is the American College of Surgeons?"/ref> See also *American College of Physicians The American College o ...

, the American Trauma Society, and the Trauma Center Association of America wrote a joint letter calling themselves "organizations representing the trauma care community" in support of H.R. 3548 and the change of the statutory definition of "trauma." According to the organizations, the existing definition of "trauma" is too narrow and "excludes burn centers from participating in federal programs designed to support emergency medical care for those suffering from traumatic injuries or to compete for federal research support targeting trauma."

References

External links

Library of Congress - Thomas H.R. 3548beta.congress.gov H.R. 3548GovTrack.us H.R. 3548OpenCongress.org H.R. 3548Congressional Budget Office's report on H.R. 3548
{{DEFAULTSORT:Improving Trauma Care Act of 2014 (H.R. 3548 113th Congress) United States federal health legislation Acts of the 113th United States Congress