Related Stories

Residency Revival: Grassroots Advocacy Averts Residency Program Closure - 03/12/2024

Grassroots physician advocacy averts emergency medicine residency program closure.

Study: Non-Physician Practice Ownership Hurts Care Quality - 01/03/2024

As the Texas Medical Association continues to fight for physician autonomy amid increasing consolidation, new research shows the downsides of hospital- and corporate-owned practice settings for patients and physicians alike.

Medical Power of Attorney - 07/17/2023

Durable Power of Attorney or Medical Power of Attorney is a document, signed by a competent adult, designating a person that the principal trusts to make health care decisions on the principal's behalf should the principal be unable to make such decisions.

Medicare Pay, Physician-Owned Hospitals Considered in Health Care Competition Hearings - 05/09/2023

Federal lawmakers recently considered several bills related to transparency and competition in the health care industry, including two that could alleviate Texas physicians’ long-standing concerns about inequitable Medicare payments and a prohibition on physician-owned hospitals.

Legislative Priority #6: Physician Autonomy, Corporate Practice Protections - 03/14/2023

During the 2023 state legislative session, the Texas Medical Association aims to protect physicians from being criminalized for the practice of medicine and to keep nonmedical entities from interfering with patient care.

Stark Self-Referral Laws and Regulations - 10/07/2022

Stark generally prohibits a physician (or an immediate family member of such physician) who has a direct or indirect financial relationship with an entity that provides a designated health service from making a referral for that service for which Medicare or Medicaid would otherwise pay. This very broad prohibition is mitigated by a large number of exceptions. These exceptions must be met exactly. Failure to meet a Stark exception will result in a violation.

CMS Drops Opposition to Texas’ Medicaid Waiver Extension; TMA Concerns Persist - 05/26/2022

Texas’ safety net got a reprieve when the federal government agreed to drop its opposition to a 10-year extension of Texas’ Medicaid 1115 Transformation Waiver, ensuring an annual $3.8 billion to offset uncompensated care through 2030.

About CME - 04/15/2021

Continuing Medical Education

How is Your Relationship With Your Hospital? - 10/06/2020

TMA is conducting the 2020 survey, and we’d appreciate your input this month on how hospital relationships affect you.

Be Vigilant - Hospital Medical Staff Bylaws and You - 09/16/2020

To bolster an argument that bylaws are binding on physicians, medical staff, and a hospital, the Texas Medical Association Office of the General Counsel has crafted language that could improve the binding effect of your hospital’s bylaws.

Update: TMB Clears Up Questions About PMP Checks for Inpatient Care - 02/21/2020

Will you be required to check the Texas Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) when a patient is admitted to a hospital or emergency department? Will you be required to check PMP Aware upon admission? What if you need to prescribe those medications while the patient is in that facility? The Texas Medical Board issued guidance on those very questions this week.

Hospitals Can Improve Care for Patients With Hearing-Loss, TMA Says - 01/03/2020

Hospitals and emergency departments should provide specific forms of identification for patients with hearing loss, the Texas Medical Association emphasized to the Texas Hospital Association last year.

The Deal's Off: Baylor, Memorial Hermann Opt to Skip Merger - 03/12/2019

Many health care companies have merged in recent years, but nothing symbolized the high-dollar, high-stakes nature of the trend like the proposed $14 billion merger of Texas health care giants Baylor Scott & White Health in Dallas and Memorial Hermann Health System in Houston. But then officials from both health care systems abruptly called off the deal today.

Each Physician Generates $2.4 Million For Hospitals, Survey Shows - 02/28/2019

According to a survey released this week, a physician generates an average of almost $2.4 million per year in net revenue on behalf of his or her affiliated hospitals. That’s an increase of almost 52 percent from 2016 figures, according to the  2019 Physician Inpatient/Outpatient Revenue Survey .

Physician Employment Continues to Grow, Survey Shows - 02/21/2019

According to a survey released this week, hospitals and health systems acquired 8,000 medical practices nationwide between July 2016 and January 2018. Also during those 18 months, 14,000 physicians left private practice for employment arrangements with hospitals, the numbers show.

When Investors Come Knocking, Physicians Should Guard Their Independence - 10/04/2018

Physicians and physician groups looking to court venture capital to finance their practices need to remember the value they bring to the deal and keep a sharp eye out for efforts to curtail their medical independence. That was the advice of two experts who kicked off the Texas Medical Association’s 2018 Fall Conference at the Dawn Duster presentation.

Physician Ownership Overview - 03/01/2018

Physician-owned hospitals (POHs) are among the highest performing, most cost-effective, patient-preferred facilities in the nation. Yet the Affordable Care Act arbitrarily restricted their growth. The Texas Medical Association urges Congress to overturn this moratorium on POHs. Read on to learn more about the rationale and the effort behind this.

Professional Development: Staff Training Never Stops - 02/28/2018

When can you check staff training off your to-do list? Never, if you want your practice to run at its best, says TMA practice consultant Yvonne Mounkhoune

Is Congress Doing Enough to Protect Physician Practices? - 02/27/2018

The Physicians Advocacy Institute is urging federal lawmakers to re-examine health care policies to ensure they promote competition and put private physicians on a level playing field with hospitals and other corporate entities.

Reviewers Required for Rural Revenue Recipients - 02/06/2018

If you understand rural health needs and have some time to help facilities in those areas seek state funding, the State Office of Rural Health needs your help.

Twelve Ways Tax Law Changes Will Affect Your Practice - 01/22/2018

In December, Congress approved and President Donald Trump signed the first significant update to the United States’ tax code in more than 30 years.

Four Stark Law Tips Worth Noting - 12/06/2016

The Stark (physician self-referral) and antikickback laws are nothing if not complicated. That’s why we asked the health care attorney who “wrote the book” on these topics to highlight a few areas that may be of interest to many physicians.

CMS Orders Ownership Disclosure - 05/13/2016

Medicare rules that take effect June 8, 2009 require Medicare physicians to tell their patients - in writing at the time of referral - if they or their immediate family members have an ownership or investment interest in the hospital to which they are referring them for treatment. They will lose their medical staff membership and admitting privileges if they don't.

Principles of Medical Ethics - 05/13/2016

Principles of Medical Ethics