Stories from Texas Medicine, November 2022

Why the Physicians Benevolent Fund Is Important: A Conversation With TMA Vice Speaker John Flores, MD - 11/08/2022

WHEN PHYSICIANS AND their families encounter personal hardship – such as a widow left with a family to raise following her physician husband’s death, or an elderly couple struggling to make ends meet as their savings dwindle following a dementia diagnosis – the Texas Medical Association’s Physicians Benevolent Fund (PBF) is here to help.

Talk to Patients About: The New York Polio Outbreak - 11/02/2022

A recent polio outbreak in New York state highlights the importance of vaccination.

Holding Their Own: Texas ACOs Contribute to Billions in Savings in Medicare Program - 11/01/2022

For the fifth straight year, the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP), through its work with accountable care organizations (ACOs), generated significant savings and high-quality results, with Texas entities once again contributing to that success.

Help, Not Discipline: TMB Program Guides Physicians Through Impairment - 11/01/2022

The Texas Physician Health Program helps physicians work through mental health crises and avoid discipline by the Texas Medical Board.

Mental Telehealth Paves the Way: Pandemic Flexibilities Expand Access to Care - 11/01/2022

Texas physicians say pandemic-era behavioral telehealth regulatory changes have already proven beneficial – and could be maximized with additional policy reforms, like payment parity for all telehealth visits; in the meantime, the gains of the past few years have forged a path toward future telehealth expansion beyond behavioral health.

Wellness First: TMA Recommits to Physicians' Well-being - 11/01/2022

The Texas Medical Association recently debuted its reimagined physician well-being support program, Wellness First, which works in tandem with organized medicine's advocacy at the state and federal levels to mitigate the underlying causes of burnout.