Acute pulmonary embolism (PE) is the third-leading cause of cardiovascular mortality in the US, nearly as prevalent as myocardial infarction and stroke, and is the leading cardiovascular cause of in-hospital death. In recognition of these daunting statistics and the severity and impact of the disease, the medical community has recently intensified efforts to increase detection of PE and improve treatment options available. Device and pharmaceutical companies are also responding to this need, developing innovative methodologies to treat PE. To address the large evidence gap regarding risk stratification, acute management, and outcomes of acute PE, multiple organizations and medical companies have undertaken initiatives to collect data and inform the field. The National PERT Consortium^™ has been at the center of this “movement,” promoting the concept of high quality multi-disciplinary team-based care, educating the medical community, patients and other stakeholders regarding the state of the art in PE care, and establishing a robust quality assurance data registry that has quickly expanded to include over 30 participating institutions in the US and contains over 6,800 patients. The PERT concept has rapidly been adopted by practitioners and institutions throughout the US and even globally, a reflection of the pressing need to enhance recognition, optimize management and improve outcomes for patients with acute PE.