Dr. Scott Hardeman is a private practice Otolaryngologist and has been in private practice for more than twenty years. He is a partner at Gateway ENT, one of the oldest and more respected private practice Otolaryngology groups in St. Louis, He was the Chairman of the St. Louis Physician Alliance (SLPA) and the SLPA ACO. This organization included over 650 physician members, participating in a clinically integrated network. It was one of the most successful ACOs in Missouri. He was a member of the Specialty Advisory Board of the Medical Protective Medical Malpractice Company. In addition to enjoying the practice of medicine, Dr. Hardeman has a particular interest in empowering physicians to be leaders in the delivery of healthcare. This interest also includes developing strategies to maintain private practices, developing alternative payment models for healthcare providers and the development of ambulatory surgery centers owned and operated by physicians. Dr. Hardeman feels it is imperative that we as physicians do all we can to maintain the doctor patient relationship and bring all care decisions back to the exam room. Maintaining the highest quality of care is paramount in this relationship. Dr. Hardeman is involved in many activities at the State and Federal level to reform the delivery of healthcare. The principal goal is to restore free market solutions to healthcare thereby making healthcare patient centric, as is should be. Recent efforts include time spent in Washington DC, with key involvement in developing a new personal healthcare plan.