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RICO Settlements: TMA's Leadership Against Payer Abuses Resulted in Relief, Reform - 04/09/2024

Back in 2001, the Texas Medical Association and the other plaintiffs alleged the nation’s major health plans had conspired to delay and reduce payments to clinicians and hospitals; the resulting lawsuits, brought under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), represented a watershed moment in TMA history.

Texas Expands Tobacco Cessation Services - 04/05/2024

With the help of a $2 million funding increase approved by state legislators in 2023 and backed by the Texas Medical Association, the Texas Department of State Health Services will expand its tobacco cessation services, giving physicians additional resources to help patients struggling with nicotine addiction.

Exceptional Circumstances: TMA Advocates “Legislative Clarity” Amid State Abortion Bans - 03/05/2024

TMA advocates “legislative clarity” amid state abortion bans.

E-Tobacco Protocol Integrates Intervention Into EHRs - 11/13/2023

Amid high rates of e-cigarette use in adolescents and young adults, and following TMA’s legislative wins on nicotine cessation and prevention, physicians now have a seamless way to help patients quit, using their electronic health records. Read more.

TMA Wins Two More Surprise Billing Lawsuits; CMS Suspends Arbitrations - 10/03/2023

Marking a fourth victory for the Texas Medical Association in as many lawsuits, a court on Aug. 24 struck down a large portion of the regulations setting forth a methodology insurers use to calculate the qualifying payment amount, or QPA, used in surprise-billing disputes – part of a series of federal rules TMA has long argued skew the arbitration process in insurers’ favor.

Patient Care Protected: E-Cigarette Regulation and Taxation - 08/04/2023

State lawmakers gave tobacco-control advocates – among them Texas physicians – a big victory by allocating a nearly $4.3 million increase for nicotine cessation and prevention efforts.

Physician-Led Results: E-Cigarette Regulation - 06/20/2023

Texas’ new budget includes a big funding increase for tobacco cessation and prevention efforts. While a tax on e-cigarettes did not survive this session, lawmakers approved a crackdown on e-cigarette marketing to minors.

Fighting Back: Practice Wins Court Battle Over Defamatory Online Reviews - 06/20/2023

One practice’s recent legal battle epitomizes physicians’ worst nightmares when it comes to online reviews. Here’s an extreme but glaring real world example, straight from the documents in a lawsuit that Austin Eye first filed in October 2017 over

Graphic Warnings on Cigarette Packs Face Ongoing Legal Challenge - 09/09/2022

A court order – once again – has upheld enforcement of the Food and Drug Administration’s rule that cigarette packs must contain more colorful and graphic health warnings. The new deadline for implementing the rule, per the court order, is Oct. 6, 2023.

TMA Backs Proposed FDA Bans on Flavoring in Cigars, Cigarettes - 07/22/2022

The Texas Medical Association recently gave enthusiastic approval to proposed federal rules designed to crack down on flavored tobacco products, a move Texas physicians say is long overdue.

Picking the Right Battles: TMA Stands Up for Medicine in the Courts - 06/29/2022

When a big point of legal contention arises – “big” meaning impactful for Texas physicians and their patients – the Texas Medical Association responds big. That’s been the case for decades, including in the courts. 

FDA’s Juul Ban a Partial Win in Fight Against E-Cigarettes - 06/28/2022

The importance of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) recent order for electronic cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc. to stop selling or distributing products “cannot be overstated,” said Pasadena pediatrician Lindy Upton McGee, MD, an assistant professor

Dulling the Pain of Future Damages: High Court Ruling Addresses Periodic Payments - 05/31/2022

Texas Supreme Court decision carries new implications for periodic payment of future medical expenses.

Houston Includes E-Cigarettes in Anti-Smoking Ordinance - 05/04/2022

The Houston City Council scored a big win for public health when it voted unanimously to add e-cigarettes to the city’s ordinance on smoking in public places, says Pasadena pediatrician Lindy Upton McGee, MD, an assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine.

Legal Legacies: TMA General Counsel Rocky Wilcox Retires After 42 Years of Service - 05/01/2022

After nearly five decades of service to organized medicine, Rocky Wilcox, the man behind TMA’s storied history of advocating for physicians and their patients through the legal and legislative systems is retiring. But the legacy he leaves behind has put physicians in Texas – even across the nation – on solid legal ground.

Tobacco Control Coalition Requests Prevention Funds - 10/04/2021

Telling state leaders “there has never been a more important time to help tobacco users quit,” Texas Tobacco Control Partners – a coalition that includes the Texas Medical Association – is asking for a $6 million boost to state funding for tobacco-use prevention and cessation.

FDA Delays Decision on the Sale of Juul, Other Popular Vaping Products - 09/29/2021

Texas physicians should be disappointed that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently postponed a long-awaited decision on whether products by Juul – which make up 40% of the e-cigarette market – should remain in the hands of consumers, says Pasadena pediatrician Lindy McGee, MD.

TMA Argues to Overturn Physician Dispensing Ban - 07/15/2021

Two Texas physicians are taking on the state’s general ban on physicians dispensing medications out of their offices, now with support from the Texas Medical Association for their argument that the prohibition does more to protect pharmacies than patient care.

Dispensing With Reason? Overturning State Ban on Providing Drugs From Physician Offices - 07/03/2021

Only a handful of states effectively ban physicians from dispensing medications out of their offices. Texas is one of them. Two Texas physicians have taken their case to the courts, arguing that the ban is unconstitutional because it does more to protect pharmacies than it does to protect patients. And TMA is lending its support to that argument.

Ruling Could Promote Frivolous Lawsuits, TMA Tells Texas Supreme Court - 06/13/2021

A recent appeals court decision could weaken a key piece of Texas’ 2003 medical liability reforms meant to cut frivolous lawsuits off at the head. In a friend-of-the-court brief filed last week, TMA and Texas Alliance for Patient Access (TAPA) tell the Texas Supreme Court that the law narrowly limits the amount of discovery – the exchange of information in a court case – before the person suing must produce an expert report. And there’s good reason for that, the groups say.  

Livelihood on the Line: Surgeon Sues Hospital over Alleged Disparagement, Malicious Peer Review - 06/10/2021

San Antonio cardiothoracic surgeon sues hospital over alleged disparagement, malicious peer. In less than two years, San Antonio cardiothoracic surgeon J. Marvin Smith III, MD, says his distinguished surgical career spanning about five decades was effectively wiped out.

Hospital Asks for Expedited Trial in Fort Worth Life-Sustaining Treatment Case - 04/30/2021

Believing that court-mandated, life-sustaining treatment is causing harm to a child in its care, Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth is attempting to resolve a highly publicized court case as quickly as possible.

Medicine Trains Its Sight on Scope Expansions - 04/01/2021

A court decision siding with chiropractors is the latest of many scope tests in the legislature and the law.

Senate Committee Unanimously Passes Bill to De-Fuse Youth E-Cigarette Use - 03/31/2021

A Senate committee unanimously passed a bill today that would establish a framework for taxing e-cigarettes by requiring a person to obtain a permit from the state before selling those products.

Six Ways Lawmakers Can Help Prevent Youth Nicotine Addiction - 03/11/2021

The Texas Medical Association and the Texas Public Health Coalition are asking lawmakers to strengthen Texas’ laws aimed at keeping tobacco and e-cigarettes out of the hands of Texas youth.