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Private Insurers Must Cover Surveillance Colonoscopies, TMA Urges Feds - 01/03/2024

To uphold the established standard of care for colorectal cancer screening, commercial insurers regulated by the Affordable Care Act (ACA) must cover follow-up surveillance colonoscopies that take place after the removal of precancerous polyps or lesions in initial screening tests.

The Power of One Voice: Elisabeth Potter, MD's Advocacy Helped Upend CMS' Plan to End Certain Breast Surgery Coverage - 11/01/2023

Elisabeth Potter, MD’s spirited advocacy helped upend CMS’ plan to eliminate coverage for a preferred breast reconstruction surgery.

TMA Partners to Boost HPV Vaccination Rates - 09/06/2023

To help improve HPV vaccination rates, the Texas Medical Association joined with a coalition of more than 40 other organizations Tuesday to announce a renewed statewide immunization campaign to prevent HPV-related cancers.

Help Patients Make Wise Choices About Treatment Options - 07/20/2023

Tools are emerging to help physicians overcome the time constraints that can preempt discussions with patients.

Quality Improvement: Practice Awards and Free Webinars - 07/20/2023

TMA, the Texas Osteopathic Medical Association (TOMA), and the TMF Health Quality Institute are collaborating again to provide the Physician Practice Quality Improvement Award program. The award formally recognizes physician practices for their dedication and commitment to providing high-quality patient care and improving outcomes.

Driving the Quality Train: TMA Physicians Lead the Way, From Measures to Standardization - 07/10/2023

In a proactive effort to resolve physician complaints, TMA and its members are deeply involved in quality issues, from participating in the development of new measures to pushing payers for standardized quality programs and supporting physicians who are curious about value-based care.

Texas Physicians Push to Improve Health Care for LGBTQ Patients - 06/28/2023

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer/questioning (LGBTQ) patients face unique barriers that put them at greater risk for mental and physical health problems. Often, their health disparities result from a lack of family support, public prejudice, and fear of the health care system. Texas physicians have launched a new workgroup and are adapting their practices to treat this underserved population.

TMF Offers Resources to Navigate CMS Requirements - 05/16/2023

TMF has launched three physician-focused networks designed to save time, improve patient care, and reduce costs associated with meeting these requirements. These programs, focused on immunizations, behavioral health and value-based improvements, are designed to help physicians benefit from—and not be penalized by—these mandates.

Medicare Expands Coverage for Colorectal Cancer Screening - 02/24/2023

Medicare patients soon will benefit from expanded coverage of colorectal cancer screening tests, following advocacy by the Texas Medical Association and others in organized medicine.

CPRIT Awards $49 Million to Texas Cancer Researchers - 10/05/2022

The $49 million recently granted by the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas shows how the agency makes Texas a leader in cancer research, says Temple internal medicine specialist Mammen Sam, MD, chair of the Texas Medical Association’s Committee on Cancer.

Talk to Patients About: Human Papillomavirus Vaccine - 07/29/2022

The vaccine for human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the most effective life-saving measures in medicine, and yet it has long suffered from poor public perception.

Biden Administration to Launch Specialty Payment Model - 07/27/2022

A new, voluntary Medicare payment model option focused on cancer care opens the value-based care door wider for specialists at a time when such models have been limited.

Medicare Lowers Thresholds to Cover Lung Cancer Screening - 04/05/2022

Medicare has announced expanded coverage for lung cancer screening using low-dose computed tomography, the only recommended screening test for the disease.

Commentary: I'm a Better Physician 'Thanks' to Cancer - 10/28/2021

The last thing a nonsmoking asymptomatic female physician expects during her usual hourly aerobic exercise is a phone call from her internist about a “spiculated lung nodule.” There was no need for the rest of the radiologist’s sentence: “suspicious for malignancy.”

Colorectal Cancer Screening More Accessible Thanks to State, National Initiatives - 06/08/2021

Colorectal cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death in Texas, but it’s also highly preventable through screening. A pair of recent measures – one each at the state and national levels – are designed to boost access to those screenings.

The Customer Is Always Right? Patient-Reported Outcome Measures Have Fans and Detractors - 01/26/2021

For too long, some doctors say measures of a physician’s quality of care have been about process: the average length of a patient stay, for example, or a patient’s readmission rate. The bottom line is results, and that’s why a shift to patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures is necessary. However, even proponents of PRO measures note that collecting the information from patients for those metrics places burdens on physicians, and some remain skeptical of bonuses and penalties tied to a measure that derives from a subjective factor: what patients think.

Troubling Trend: Texas’ 2018 QPP Data Contains More Bad Signs - 01/05/2021

As the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services continues to churn out glowing data annually on its Quality Payment Program (QPP), a full picture of the program’s impact eludes the agency’s reporting. According to the Texas Medical Association’s analysis of state-level data in the 2018 QPP Experience Report, it’s clear that small practices continue to feel most of the program’s punitive pressures.

TMA Calls Governor’s Plan “Prudent and Careful” - 04/27/2020

Statement by Texas Medical Association (TMA) President David C. Fleeger, MD, in response to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s announcement that Texas hospitals now need to reserve only 15% of their capacity for COVID-19 patients.

Screening Families of North Texans to Identify Persons with an Increased Risk for Cancer Due to Lynch Syndrome - 12/04/2019

In 2016, the UT Southwestern Medical Center’s Cancer Genetics Program was awarded a grant (PP160103) by the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) to increase awareness of hereditary cancer syndromes, particularly Lynch syndrome (LS), and implement a population-based genetic screening program to identify those at high genetic risk for cancer.

Texas Voters Approve Renewed Funding for Cancer Research - 11/06/2019

Texas' ongoing battle against cancer just got new life. Voters statewide overwhelmingly approved Proposition 6 on Tuesday to continue funding for the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT), the state's cancer-fighting agency.

Prop. 6 Passage Will Save Lives - 11/06/2019

Statement by David C. Fleeger, MD, president of the Texas Medical Association, in reaction to the passage of Proposition 6.  “Thanks to Texans who checked ‘yes’ in support of Proposition 6 in today’s election, the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) can build on its legacy of saving countless Texans’ lives, while saving and making Texas millions of dollars every year...."

Vote Tuesday to Keep Texas A Leader in Cancer Research - 11/04/2019

The Texas Medical Association is encouraging you to vote for a proposition that would extend Texas’ place as a leader in the fight against cancer. “Please vote AGAINST cancer and FOR saving Texans’ lives. Physicians of TMA urge everyone to VOTE FOR Proposition 6 on Tuesday's ballot to continue to fund the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT),” TMA President David C. Fleeger, MD, said.

Texas Health Care Professionals Praise CPRIT’s Cancer-Prevention Funding - 10/22/2019

Kathleen Schmeler, MD, spends a lot of time trying to vaccinate young Texans against human papillomavirus (HPV), which causes cervical cancer and other types of cancer. As part of a special four-person panel on the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas Monday, Dr. Schmeler described how funding from CPRIT makes her work possible.

Commentary: Texas Has a Secret Weapon Against Cancer - 10/14/2019

Cancer is the No. 2 cause of death in Texas and across the United States. The good news is that things change, and we can be active agents in making sure that they change for the better. Reauthorization of the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) would do more than keep the ball rolling; it would save lives.

Vote for CPRIT - 09/26/2019

On Nov. 5, Texans will vote on Proposition 6, a constitutional amendment designed to extend CPRIT’s funding by $3 billion and keep the agency’s grants flowing for an estimated 10 additional years. (See “Vote for Proposition 6 on Nov. 5,” page 21.) TMA supports this effort to keep CPRIT’s current funding from running out in 2022.