REPORT OF TEXAS DELEGATION TO THE AMA
TEXDEL Report 3-A-06
Subject: Policy Review
Presented by: Susan Rudd Bailey, MD, Chair
Referred to: Reference Committee on Financial and Organizational Affairs
House of Delegates policies in the association's Policy Compendium are reviewed periodically for relevance and appropriateness. In considering the following policy, the delegation notes that all but one of the recommendations have been accomplished. Specialty society representation is a topic of ongoing debate and study, with an increase in representation having been implemented. For these reasons, the delegation recommends policy on the AMA's Study of the Federation be deleted.
40.004 Study of Federation Report Revised : The Texas Medical Association supports AMA's revised Study of the Federation report as amended by the Texas Delegation to the AMA: (1) that a Federation Coordination Team be established to achieve the functions endorsed by the AMA/Federation House in Policy 545.962, which are to clarify roles and achieve active coordination of efforts in the Federation and to establish a process for pursuing collaborative efforts among Federation members. It will have no role in developing policy, and will not have any authority to impose solutions on any Federation organization; (2) that the life span of the Federation Coordination Team be three years, reflecting the expectation that the AMA/Federation Board of Trustees will assume the responsibilities of the Federation Coordination Team at end of the Team's tenure; (3) that the Federation Coordination Team be composed of 20 individuals and that these individuals be selected in the following manner: (a) the Chair of the Study of the Federation, Joseph T. Painter, MD, appoint a Selection Committee of five individuals chosen from the members of the current Project Team, the Consortium, and the House of Delegates; (b) the Section Committee select the individuals to serve on the Federation Coordination Team, with the limitation that the members of the Selection Committee cannot appoint themselves to the Federation Coordination Team; (c) some of the members of the Coordination Team be drawn from the current members of the Project Team to provide for continuity in implementing the recommendations of the Study of the Federation; and (d) the FCT be as representative as possible of the broad diversity of the Federation and its physician constituencies, including such dimensions as age, gender, and career stage (i.e., medical student, resident, young physician); (4) that the members of the Federation Coordination Team select an individual to serve as the Chair of the Team and that the Selection Committee appoint five alternates to fill any vacancies that may occur on the Team; (5) that the AMA/Federation Board of Trustees work closely with the Federation Coordination Team so that the Board is in a position to assume responsibility for the functions of the Coordination Team at the end of the three-year tenure of the Team; (6) that the Federation Coordination Team report to the AMA/Federation House of Delegates and that the FCT communicate regularly about its work with the AMA/Federation House, the AMA/Federation Board of Trustees and the other organizations which comprise the Federation of Medicine; (7) That during the tenure of the Federation Coordination Team, the AMA provide financial support to the FCT's activities; (8) that an economical method of determining the number of AMA delegation positions allocated to specialty societies in the AMA Federation House be developed by the Federation Coordinating Team, based on a system whereby each member selects one specialty society to represent him or her, that until the year 2000, the number of delegates and alternate delegates allocated to a specialty society will be on the basis of one delegate and one alternate delegate for each 2000 AMA members, or portion of 2000 AMA members, who select that particular society, after the year 2000, the number of delegates and alternates allocated to a specialty society will be on the basis of one delegate and one alternate delegate for each 1000 AMA members, or portion of 1000 AMA members, who select that particular specialty, each specialty society that meets the eligibility criteria and is represented in the AMA/Federation House be allocated at least one delegate and alternate delegate position; (9) that the Council on Long Range Planning study the current Bylaws criteria that specialty societies must meet to be granted and retain representation in the AMA/Federation House, as well as the processes through which specialty societies apply for representation in the AMA/Federation House, in order to determine if changes in those criteria and processes should be made in light of the new approach to specialty representation described in Recommendation 8 and the overall direction and intent of the recommendations in this report; (10) that, in order to implement Policy 545.962, which states that the House of Delegates should be composed of organizations that reflect the major dimensions of a physician's life, the AMA/Federation Board of Trustees organize hearings and/or engage in other forms of active outreach to special-interest physician organizations and mode-of-practice organizations to solicit their views on the best way of encouraging their active participation in the new Federation of Medicine; and that the Board of Trustees, with support from appropriate councils, use the input from these special-interest medical associations (ethnic, cultural, demographic, etc.) and mode-of-practice organizations (group practices, managed care organizations, solo physicians, physicians in medical teaching, research physicians, physicians in administration, etc) into the AMA/Federation House of Delegates; (11) that the AMA/Federation House of Delegates offer one voting seat to each of the following organizations: National Medical Association, American Medical Women's Association, the American Osteopathic Association; (12) that the AMA/Federation hold hearings and/or engage in other forms of active outreach to segments of the membership (women physicians, solo practice, IMGs, physicians in research, employed physicians, etc.) to solicit their input on how they could participate actively in the AMA/Federation; and that the Board of Trustees, with support from appropriate Councils, use the input from these outreach efforts to identify mechanisms and processes on how active participation by such groups can best be achieved; (13) that the AMA/Federation House of Delegates acknowledge the need for a "statement of collaborative intent" that respects the autonomy of constituent organizations, but also characterizes the nature of the working relationships that must exist among all members of the new Federation if it is to achieve its objectives, and that the Council on Judicial and Ethical Affairs and the Council on Long Range Planning and Development work together to develop and recommend such a statement. The statement should address such topics as: (a) creating a common organization that is member-driven and member-lead; (b) promoting trust and cooperation throughout the Federation of Medicine; (c) bringing together the different components of the Federation to develop a consensus on critical issues relating to patient care, ethics, research and education; (d) supporting, whenever possible, the policies established by the AMA/Federation House of Delegates, and providing prior notice to other Federation organizations when public opposition to the policy positions established by the AMA/Federation House of Delegates is necessary; (e) openly sharing information that can help other Federation organizations succeed, especially information that helps the Federation be responsive to member needs; (f) working with other Federation organizations to minimize duplication of services, increase efficiency in organized medicine, and provide the best possible value to members through reduced dues and enhanced services; and (g) working cooperatively with other Federation organizations to achieve better communications among physicians, between physicians and their medical associations, and among the organizations which comprise the Federation of Medicine; (14) that the organizations represented in the AMA/Federation House of Delegates, recognizing the special need for coordinated action with regard to public policy activities, agree that they will: (a) work toward what they believe to be in the best interest of all patients and physicians; (b) share information and knowledge on key public policy issues so that everyone can build on it in seeking solutions; (c) take established AMA/Federation House of Delegates policy into consideration as each element of the Federation develops its own policies and positions; and (d) communicate regularly and openly, and share with each other, in advance, positions and public statements which represent major departures from AMA/Federation House of Delegates policy, and actively work to find acceptable common ground; (15) that the AMA Bylaws be modified to be consistent with the recommendations presented in this report and the actions of the House of Delegates on Board of Trustees Report 40 (I-95); that the recommendations of this report be adopted in lieu of recommendations 17, 18, 19, 21 and 22 of Board Report 40 (8-95), "Report of the Study of the Federation" and the remainder of the report to be filed (Texas Delegation to AMA, p 91, A-96).
Recommendation : Delete.