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TMA Moment In Time: Pandemic Response - 04/09/2024

The strength of organized medicine carried TMA and Texas physicians through an unprecedented public health crisis and beyond.

TMA Moment in Time: SGR Repeal - 04/09/2024

The historic victory has roots in TMA advocacy and may provide a playbook for future Medicare reform.

Straight Shooter: Incoming TMA President Ray Callas, MD, Aims for Practice Protections, Membership Gains - 04/01/2024

Incoming Texas Medical Association President Ray Callas, MD, an anesthesiologist from Beaumont, cites as his top priorities preventing scope-of-practice creep, defending physician autonomy, and bolstering the TMA's membership.

Fix Medicare Now: 2024 Fee Schedule Solidifies Cut, Heightens Calls for Reform - 03/05/2024

This latest cut stems from the 2024 Medicare physician fee schedule and Congressional inaction, both of which further erode physician payment, practice viability, and patient access to care.

Medicine’s MIPS Win: 2024 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Stabilizes Program - 03/05/2024

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services yielded to the Texas Medical Association’s concerns about its proposal and the impact of constant changes to MIPS on its participants.

New Law Prohibits Employer COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates, With Exceptions - 02/28/2024

Thanks to advocacy by the Texas Medical Association, guardrails for patient safety and practice viability are included in a new state law that prohibits employers, including physician offices and health care facilities, from mandating COVID-19 vaccines among employees.

New Poster Encourages Flu Vaccination Amid COVID-19 - 02/28/2024

“COVID-19 is here, but so is the flu.” That is the message of a new downloadable poster available from the Texas Medical Association’s Be Wise – Immunize program to help you stress the need for flu vaccination, this year more than ever.

FDA Approves New RSV Vaccine, COVID-19 Booster - 10/19/2023

Physicians will have a new vaccine in their arsenal to help protect against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a timely development as cold, flu, and COVID-19 illnesses tend to converge and ramp up this time of year and become difficult to differentiate.

“We Can Compete:” Direct Payment Models Present Opportunity for Independent Practices - 10/13/2023

Rising health care costs. Declining outcomes. Restricted patient access to care. Rampant consolidation. Incessant physician payment cuts. Excessive prior authorization. Creeping scope-of-practice attacks.

AMA Launches National Study of Physician Practice Expenses - 10/11/2023

With the backing of the Texas Medical Association and 172 other health care organizations, the American Medical Association recently launched a survey of U.S. physicians to better understand practice expenses and to support its advocacy for physician payment reform.

Leading in Crisis: Diana L. Fite, MD, Carried TMA During COVID-19 Pandemic - 10/03/2023

Diana L. Fite, MD, carried TMA during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Urge Texans to Get Flu Vaccine Early, Officials Say - 09/06/2023

With flu season on the horizon – and the COVID-19 pandemic expected to continue – Texas physicians should strongly encourage patients to receive a flu vaccination as early as possible.

Talk to Patients About: Breakthrough Infections for COVID-19 Vaccinations - 09/06/2023

 The new mRNA vaccines for COVID-19 are highly effective at giving people immunity against the disease. But as with all other vaccines, that immunity is not 100% for everyone who receives them.  

Tune in Saturday to Watch TMA’s 155th President Take Office - 08/31/2023

Although TexMed 2020 has been canceled, and the Texas Medical Association House of Delegates meeting has been suspended, Diana L. Fite, MD, still will take office as TMA’s 155th president Saturday. Visit TMA’s Facebook page at noon Saturday to watch a live broadcast of her installation and address.

TMA Suspends 2020 House of Delegates Meeting - 08/31/2023

Because of the evolving COVID-19 pandemic, the Texas Medical Association Board of Trustees has voted to suspend the 2020 TMA House of Delegates meeting, either virtual or in-person, until an appropriate time in the future when the crisis has subsided.

PAs and APRNs: How Do These Midlevels Differ? - 08/30/2023

Physicians interested in hiring a midlevel practitioner for their practice sometimes wonder whether they should hire a physician assistant or an advanced practice registered nurse. Here’s the basic difference between the two.

Report: Most Private Payers Have Stopped COVID Cost-Sharing Waivers - 08/21/2023

Private health insurance plans have largely stopped waiving patient cost-sharing for COVID-19 treatment, according to a recent report by the Peterson Center on Healthcare and Kaiser Family Foundation. The data represent an overwhelming shift from payer cost-sharing policies during 2020 as indicated by previous research.

TMA Fights Another “Devastating” Medicare Physician Pay Cut Threat - 08/04/2023

Despite medicine’s calls for comprehensive reform, the recently proposed 2024 Medicare physician fee schedule would continue the worrying trends of deepening physician pay cuts and increased risk associated with the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System.

Congress Weighs Medicare Payment Reform During Health Care Consolidation Hearings - 07/25/2023

Federal lawmakers in both chambers recently took up the issue of increasing consolidation – and, with it, decreasing competition – in the health care industry. Surfaced as possible solutions were several of the Texas Medical Association’s legislative priorities, including Medicare physician payment reform.

COVID-19: Telemedicine - 07/20/2023

View COVID-19 resources related to Telemedicine.

HHS Doling Out About $9 Billion in Fourth Phase of PRF - 07/20/2023

Texas practitioners are receiving more than $642 million in Provider Relief Fund (PRF) Phase 4 payments totaling nearly $9 billion nationally, the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced.

Public Health Emergency’s End Would Kickstart Medicaid Eligibility Re-Checks. Here’s How to Prepare - 07/17/2023

After strong advocacy by the American Medical Association and other organizations, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services appears poised to extend the COVID-19 public health emergency for a 10th time.

UPDATE: Feds Poised to Extend COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Through Spring 2023 - 07/17/2023

After continued advocacy by the Texas Medical Association, American Medical Association, and other organizations, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services seems likely to extend the COVID-19 public health emergency  for an 11th time.

Novavax COVID Vaccine Available to Help Reach Patients Hesitant About mRNA Vaccines - 07/17/2023

The recently introduced COVID-19 vaccine Novavax gives physicians another tool for combating the disease, and it enjoys two important differences from previous vaccines that are potential advantages, says San Antonio infectious disease specialist Charles Lerner, MD, a member of the Texas Medical Association’s COVID-19 Task Force.

PHE End Brings Changes for Telehealth, Billing, and Medicaid - 06/26/2023

The federal public health emergency related to COVID-19 will end May 11 – and with it, several flexibilities related to telehealth coverage, virtual physician supervision of nonphysician practitioners, and Medicaid enrollment for nearly 3 million Texans.