Texas, it’s time to mobilize every medical resource available

It’s a phone call none of us ever want to make: 9-1-1.

Dialing those three numbers often means something is very, very wrong with you or someone you love. But when paramedics arrive, you learn your ambulance ride to the hospital will most likely end up with you being sent home by hospital staff. Why? Because the hospital is already full of patients.

Rio Grande Valley Vietnam veteran Edwin Howell experienced this as he battled COVID-19. Howell told local news station KRGV that the ambulance team advised him to ask his wife to drive him to a nearby freestanding emergency center (FEC) instead of the local hospital.

At the FEC, Mr. Howell was given extensive, well-coordinated care and credits the doctors and nurses at the facility with saving his life. “If it wasn’t for my wife, the exceptional workers at the ER, and God, I would not be here today,” Howell said.

Mr. Howell’s story is one of many that highlights the vital role of FECs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout 2020, FECs have been a valuable resource for our state, treating Texans as well as helping relieve pressure on overburdened hospitals. But as Texas remains the state with the most COVID-19 cases in the U.S., and our healthcare infrastructure stretches thinner and thinner, government has not made the requisite adjustments to meet the demand for care.

In El Paso today, hospitalization numbers are so high that medical professionals are diverting patients to other cities, sometimes hundreds of miles away, and rationing care. Cities like Lubbock and Amarillo face similar challenges. In the Rio Grande Valley, where Mr. Howell lives, Cameron and Hidalgo Counties are among the top eight Texas counties with the most confirmed COVID-19 cases.

How do we help areas overwhelmed by the pandemic and how do we prevent similar situations as COVID-19 cases soar? By using every appropriate medical resource and demanding that government regulations catch up to the realities of this pandemic. Today, FECs make up more than 200 medical facilities with around 1,500 beds throughout the state that could help ease the burden on our hospitals, but pre-pandemic state regulations prevent them from being fully put to use.

Simple regulatory changes could improve health outcomes for Texans facing overcrowded hospitals. Last month, The Texas Association of Freestanding Emergency Centers (TAFEC) filed a formal petition for rulemaking, requesting Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) and Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) adopt a rule that allows freestanding ERs to offer non-emergency care in addition to emergency care under their state licensure. This change would mean hundreds of additional facilities would be able to offer a symptomatic COVID testing, lab work, pharmacy services and outpatient care.

Freestanding ERs are highly regulated, fully staffed facilities, open 24/7 across the state, that are more than equipped to handle more such as administering vaccines and COVID-19-related therapies.

“A good setting would be an independent setting for the administration of the drug,” Governor Greg Abbott told reporters during a news conference on a new COVID-19 fighting therapy. Freestanding ERs are just that.

It’s vital that Texas update its regulations so that under-used medical facilities are there for the Texans who need them. FECs have low wait times and rank high in patient satisfaction. The majority of my co-workers and I all left busy hospitals so we could provide more intimate and patient-centered care. As a result, my company’s freestanding ERs have won 38 Press Ganey awards for consistently providing an outstanding patient experience in emergency care, making us one of the most decorated healthcare organizations in the nation. Press Ganey is the most widely used independent, third-party patient experience surveyor in the country, partnering with more than 41,000 healthcare facilities, including major hospital groups across the country.

But despite the risks we’ve faced throughout this year — putting our health and safety on the line to support our communities, despite the highest patient satisfaction ratings — FECs’ are barred from providing anything but emergency medical care. Texas must mobilize every medical resource available, including FECs, as our state’s COVID patient numbers surge and we continue to have the unfortunate distinction of more cases than any other state. FECs stand ready to help, as soon as the state lets us.

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The Texas Association of Freestanding Emergency Centers (TAFEC) is a member-based association representing more than 120 freestanding emergency centers in Texas.