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AMA Board Chair Calls on Texas to Help Secure Medicare Fix, Restore Physician Autonomy - 12/04/2024

Attendees of Texas Medical Association’s second Business of Medicine Conference heard a host of economic hurdles to physicians, but underscoring them all is the decades-long trend of decreasing Medicare physician payment, according to the American Medical Association’s Board of Trustees Chair Michael Suk, MD.


AMA President-Elect Acclaims TMA Advocacy for Scope, Prior Auth Wins - 12/04/2024

Texas physicians’ advocacy accomplishments both in the state and alongside the American Medical Association earned praise from AMA’s president-elect at the Texas Medical Association’s Leadership Summit on Jan. 27.


Senate Committee Tackles Scope of Practice in Access-to-Care Hearing - 11/18/2024

In a hearing packed with representatives from medicine, nursing, pharmacy, behavioral health, licensing boards, and academia, the Senate Health and Human Services Committee tackled Texas’ health care workforce shortages with the Texas Medical Association delivering its message loud and clear: Expanding scope of practice is not the answer to helping patients in rural and underserved areas.


Abbott Signals Support for Opioid Crisis Interventions - 11/18/2024

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott recently listed the fentanyl crisis as one of seven “emergency” items this session, clearing a path toward passage of Texas Medical Association-backed legislation that aims to curb opioid-related deaths.


Abbott Signals Support for Opioid Crisis Interventions: Federal Efforts Also Are Underway - 11/18/2024

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in February listed the fentanyl crisis as one of seven “emergency” items this session, clearing a path toward passage of Texas Medical Association-backed legislation that aims to curb opioid-related deaths.


Meet Opioid Training Mandates With CME From TMA - 08/29/2024

Through the Texas Medical Association, physicians can play a part in curbing rates of opioid overdose and substance use disorder – and meet state and federal agencies’ CME mandates.


Effects of Opioids and Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs on Chronic Low Back Pain and Related Measures: Results from the PRECISION Pain Research Registry - 07/30/2024

Measuring treatments used by 202 patients with chronic low back pain in the PRECISION Pain Research Registry, this study determined the associations of opioid and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) therapy with clinical status. More than one-fourth of patients did not use nonpharmacologic treatments for low back pain. Patients age 50-59 and 60-79 years old were more likely to use opioids than younger patients. Patients using opioids reported greater pain and back-related disability than did patients using NSAIDs. Patients concurrently using opioids and NSAIDs reported greater back-related disability and poorer quality of life than did patients using no or other pharmacologic therapy. No significant associations between pharmacologic therapy and clinical status remained after controlling for potential confounders. Neither opioids nor opioids combined with NSAIDs were more effective than just NSAIDs. Greater use of nonpharmacologic therapies and better second-line, nonopioid ph...


New TMA Policy: Reduce Fentanyl Overdoses with Improved Naloxone Access - 06/24/2024

Over a 27-hour period this spring, the city of Austin saw nine people die across 79 separate overdose incidents, reflecting the severity of the statewide fentanyl crisis. Policy approved by the Texas Medical Association’s House of Delegates in May anticipated the problem and promotes one of the most effective solutions – increased education about and distribution of naloxone, an opioid overdose reversal drug.


Physicians’ DEA Registration Now Requires Training on Substance Use Disorder - 01/03/2024

Physicians who must register or renew their registration for a Drug Enforcement Administration license will face a new requirement as of June 27: To register, they will have attest to taking a one-time, eight-hour training on how to treat patients with opioid or other substance use disorders.


Feds Extend Telemedicine Prescribing Flexibilities Through 2024 - 11/10/2023

With permanent telehealth prescribing policies still under consideration, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) again has extended temporary pandemic-era telehealth flexibilities to allow physicians to virtually prescribe certain controlled medications, now through Dec. 31, 2024.


CDC Grant Funds Drug Overdose Data Collection in Texas - 10/30/2023

A nearly $4 million grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention could give Texas physicians new tools to handle national opioid and mental health crises, which have made it difficult to identify patients at risk for substance use disorders.


Help Promote National Drug Prescription Take Back Day on Oct. 28 - 10/19/2023

Prescription Drug Take Back Day, which allows people to dispose of prescription drugs safely and anonymously, is scheduled for Oct. 26 at locations throughout the state.


Physicians Warn: New Drug Overdose Threat Contains Veterinary Tranquilizer Xylazine - 09/18/2023

Xylazine, a tranquilizer used in veterinary medicine, is appearing in illicit street drugs with fentanyl, compounding the dangers of the opioid overdose epidemic. Xylazine, also called “tranq” according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, is used to tranquilize animals. It is not approved for human use and has killed people who have taken the drug.


Physicians Alarmed by Sharp Spike in Accidental Overdose Deaths Fueled by Illegal Drugs - 09/18/2023

A surge in accidental opioid overdose deaths in Texas is showing no signs of slowing down, and Texas physicians warn the rise in illegally produced drugs laced with fentanyl are to blame. They also say increasing the availability of life-saving, overdose-reversing drugs like naloxone, as well as addiction treatment programs, can help.


Physicians Urge Texans to Safely Return Unused Prescription Medication - 09/18/2023

Texas physicians recommend people with unused or expired prescription drugs at home dispose of them safely this weekend, so they are not accidently consumed. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is organizing its biannual prescription drug Take Back Day on Saturday, Oct. 29. Prescription drugs can be returned anonymously at pop up locations across the state.


Opioids: Resources for Prescribing and Addiction Treatment - 07/20/2023

Get access to information about medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder. Online resources for prescribing opioids appropriately also are available.


Court Hearing Approaches in TMA Surprise Billing Lawsuit - 07/17/2023

With a Feb. 4 court hearing on the horizon, the Texas Medical Association recently reiterated its strong opposition to a part of a federal rule that medicine says unfairly favors health insurers when directing arbiters to resolve payment disputes between insurers and physicians under the federal surprise billing law.


New Laws Reshape Texas Health Care Landscape - 06/29/2023

New laws are about to transform health care in Texas, addressing long-term issues like surprise medical billing, raising the tobacco-use age, and improving Medicaid. The 2020-21 state budget also includes vital funding increases for women’s health programs, graduate medical education (GME), and community mental health services


Welcome MAT: Physicians Debunk Skepticism of Medication-Assisted Treatment - 06/05/2023

Many physicians have concerns about medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for substance use disorders. But a better understanding of MAT – combined with recent changes in federal law about prescribing these medications and required physician education on the subject – will allow a much broader group of doctors to help tackle the opioid crisis.


DEA Extends Telemedicine Flexibilities for Prescription of Controlled Medications - 05/12/2023

To avoid lapses in patient care now that the COVID-19 public health emergency has ended, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration issued a temporary extension of telemedicine flexibilities for the prescribing of controlled medications originally adopted in March 2020.


Removing Texas Physicians From the Health Care Team Would be Harmful, Costly - 05/04/2023

Op-ed by Texas Medical Association (TMA) President Gary W. Floyd, MD, and Board of Trustees Chair G. Ray Callas, MD, about legislation proposing to give advanced practice registered nurses and other providers independent practice authority without physician supervision.


Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioids, Alcohol, Tobacco: What You Should Know - 04/19/2023

Concern about opioids – especially the growing threat of overdose posed by illicit fentanyl – has created heightened awareness about treatment options for people with substance use disorders. One of the oldest and most effective is medication-assisted treatment.


UPDATE: Feds Declare Xylazine an Emerging National Threat in Opioid Crisis - 04/14/2023

Physicians’ ability to diagnose and treat opioid-related overdoses may be complicated by the discovery of the animal tranquilizer xylazine mixed in illicit fentanyl-laced drugs, the Texas Department of State Health Services warned in a recent health advisory.


Opioid Crisis: Illegally Manufactured Fentanyl Facts and Resources - 04/06/2023

Use these resources to get the facts and learn more about how illegally manufactured fentanyl is impacting public health.


FDA Approves Naloxone Nasal Spray for Over-the-Counter Sale - 04/03/2023

The Food and Drug Administration has approved over-the-counter sales of the opioid-reversing medication Narcan nasal spray – a move Texas physicians have long championed.