Politics and Elections

Best Interests at Heart: New TMA President Rick Snyder, MD, Champions Physician Advocacy - 05/01/2023

TMA’s incoming president, Rick Snyder, MD, wants to see advocacy become a part of physicians’ DNA. He also wants to equip practices of all stripes to survive the economic headwinds of medical consolidation.

Eight Simple Ways to Get Involved in TMA Advocacy - 12/14/2022

Your strong voice is needed to improve the practice of medicine today and for future generations. That's why it's important for all members of the family of medicine to get involved. You don't have to be an advocacy expert. All you need to do is follow these eight steps.

Generational Pull: Vivek Rao, MD, Has Passion for Medicine in His DNA - 08/15/2022

Odessa allergist Vivek Rao, MD, comes from a family of physicians and inherited their passion for organized medicine.

PAC-ing a Punch for Medicine: Involvement in TEXPAC Lays Foundation for Legislative Victories - 01/03/2022

TEXPAC leaders say legislative victories happen because of grassroots, physician-driven efforts to elect friends of medicine to office. TEXPAC helps generate those victories with a dogged, systematic evaluation of candidates who have the profession’s best interests at heart, endorsing and funding the ones who demonstrate their medical mettle. It’s the Party of Medicine, not of Democrats or Republicans; a candidate’s stances on TMA’s top issues, and the impressions of TEXPAC physicians in a candidate’s district, are what carry the most sway.

Leading in the Legislature: Physician Lawmakers Help Advance Medicine's Agenda - 08/02/2021

Physician lawmakers play a key role in advancing medicine's legislative agenda.

Stand Up for Medicine – VOTE TOMORROW - 11/02/2020

Election Day is tomorrow, Tuesday, Nov. 3. Don’t let reports of high levels of turnout keep you from voting. The outcome of some of the races that TMA is watching have the potential to impact medicine’s advocacy.

Last Chance For Early Voting: The House of Medicine Needs You - 10/30/2020

Election Day – Nov. 3 – is less than one week away. Early voting ends tomorrow – Friday, Oct. 30. Statewide, nearly half of Texas’ record number of registered voters have taken advantage of early voting to cast ballots. Ensure the House of Medicine’s voice is heard by voting.

The House of Medicine Needs You … To Register to Vote - 09/10/2020

If you’re new to Texas, never registered before, or have moved since the last election, you will need to register by Monday, Oct. 5, to be eligible to vote in the November elections.

TMA Calls on Republican Party of Texas to Cancel In-Person Meeting - 08/21/2020

Editor's note: TMA sent the attached letter to the Republican Party of Texas this morning. We are hopeful the party will follow our recommendation. "Dear Mr. Dickey, Ms. Jackson, and Mr. Whatley: On behalf of the more than 53,000 physician and medical student members of the Texas Medical Association, I am writing to recommend that Republican Party of Texas (RPT) reconsider its decision to conduct your state convention as an in-person function in Houston on July 16-18. This is just not the time to bring thousands of the party faithful from around the state to an indoor meeting in a county that, as I write, reports more than 18,000 active COVID-19 cases..."

TEXPAC’s Candidates Nearly Sweep the Super Tuesday Field - 03/04/2020

Nearly every one of the 132 legislative candidates endorsed by TEXPAC, the Texas Medical Association political action committee, won their party’s nomination in the March 3 primary. Another five are headed for runoff elections on May 26. Only two lost outright.

Which Presidential Candidate Stands for What Again? - 02/24/2020

A group of dedicated Harris County physicians has a cure for “too many candidates confusion disorder.” They compiled a simple table of the candidates’ positions on seven key health care policy issues based on the candidates’ official websites and The Washington Post’s “We’re Asking 2020 Democrats Where They Stand on Key Issues.”

More Women Needed in State Leadership, Panelists Say - 12/13/2019

Women need to be more aggressive about seizing leadership roles in the Texas Legislature and state government, according to a panel of Texas politicians speaking at the Texas Medical Association 2019 Advocacy Retreat on Saturday.

Big Noises Big Issues: Health Care Takes Center Stage One Year Out From 2020 Election - 11/11/2019

One year from now, Texas voters will hit the polls. They’ll be voting for president, for Congress, and for seats in the Texas Legislature. At the state and national levels, health coverage, Medicaid access, and prescription drug costs have gotten plenty of attention already, and they’ll get plenty more between now and the closing of the polls on Nov. 3, 2020. Here’s a look at some of the major health care debates taking center stage during the 2020 election cycle, what voters are and will be hearing about, and what Texas Medical Association policy says on those particular issues.

Take Steps To Improve Health Care Access Throughout Texas - 11/01/2019

If you’re looking for a way to let state lawmakers know why health care coverage matters to all Texans, join or start a block walk during #SickOfItTX’s Weekend of Action for Health Care on Nov. 9 and 10. Walks are currently scheduled in Austin, Dallas, Galveston, Houston, McAllen, and San Antonio; more sites may be added, or you can host your own.