TMA Physicians Urge AMA to Adopt Policy Suggestions

 June 5, 2015

  • WHAT: In the next few days, Texas physicians will urge the American Medical Association’s (AMA’s) House of Delegates, the national organization’s policymaking body, to adopt policy recommendations developed by Texas physicians. The physician leaders from the Texas Medical Association (TMA) are attending the AMA annual meeting in Chicago. 

  • WHEN: Friday-Wednesday, June 5-10, 2015 

  • WHERE: AMA annual meeting in Chicago 

  • WHO: TMA Texas Delegation member physicians from across Texas 

  • POLICY HIGHLIGHTS: Following up on the directives of the TMA House of Delegates, Texas physicians are presenting four resolutions for consideration by the AMA house. They are:

    • A call for AMA to ask Congress to act rapidly to repeal all penalties for noncompliance with Medicare’s electronic health records incentive program and meaningful use requirements; 

    • A call for AMA to work with Congress to require real-time notification to physicians when patients are within the 45- or 30-day COBRA grace period; 

    • A request for AMA to “evaluate and work to establish consensus regarding the appropriate value of resident and fellow services”; and 

    • A directive for AMA to support legislation to “prevent and divert prostitution” rather than criminalize it. 

The Texas Delegation to the AMA is made up of 36 physicians, residents, and medical students from across the state who serve as delegates or alternate delegates. They practice in and around Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth, El Paso, Houston, Lubbock, Nacogdoches, San Antonio, Temple, and Tyler-Longview. Together with the fellow delegates from across the nation, they debate and adopt policy directing the AMA’s actions.

TMA is the largest state medical society in the nation, representing more than 48,000 physician and medical student members. It is located in Austin and has 110 component county medical societies around the state. TMA’s key objective since 1853 is to improve the health of all Texans.

-- 30 --

Contacts:

Brent Annear, Office (512) 370-1381, Cell (512) 656-7320, brent.annear[at]texmed[dot]org

Steve Levine, Office (512) 370-1380, Cell (512) 750-0971, steve.levine[at]texmed[dot]org

Click here to follow TMA on TwitterOr visit TMA on Facebook.

Last Updated On

February 01, 2017

Originally Published On

June 05, 2015