Press - Package of bills to increase number of physicians in rural, underserved areas signed by Governor Brown Sacramento – Two bills that would put more physicians in rural and underserved parts of California were signed by Governor Jerry Brown. SB 21 and AB 1288 were both sponsored by the California Medical Association (CMA). The 2013-14 state budget included a $15 million annual appropriation to fully fund the University of California Riverside School of Medicine (UCR SOM). The Inland Empire, including Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, is experiencing the lowest supply of physicians per capital than any other region of the state. Allocating a continuous funding source for ... September 11, 2013 General Advocacy 0 0 Comment Read More »
Legislature passes CURES bill The California Assembly has unanimously passed a bill (SB 809) that will provide $9 million annually to upgrade and maintain the Controlled Substances and Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES). CURES is an online database that allows authorized users, including physicians, pharmacists, law enforcement and regulatory boards, to access information about a patient’s controlled substance prescription history. The bill now heads to the governor’s desk. The California Medical Association (CMA) changed its position on the bill from neutral to support after negotiating significant amendments to the bill that will make ... September 11, 2013 General Advocacy, CURES, Drug Prescribing, Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP), Public Health 0 0 Comment Read More »
CMA opposes bill that lowers standard of proof for physician discipline California legislators are currently considering a bill, SB 670 (Steinberg), that would increase the likelihood that limitations will be erroneously placed on a physician’s ability to practice. SB 670 allows the Medical Board of California to use a significantly lower standard of proof – "probable cause" instead of the more reliable "clear and convincing evidence" – to determine if a physician's prescribing of controlled substance is a danger to patients and the public. This reduces the level of evidence needed to justify placing a serious limitation on the physician’s ... September 10, 2013 General Drug Prescribing, Medical Board of California, Advocacy, Professional Development and Licensure 0 0 Comment Read More »
MICRA Update: Crunch time in the Capitol A little more than three weeks remain in the 2013 legislative session, which means both sides in the growing fight over California’s Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA) are working hard to woo members of the state Assembly and Senate over to their side of the issue. In the days following the Legislature’s return from its summer recess, the California Medical Association (CMA) and other members of the Californians Allied for Patient Protection began blanketing legislative offices with letters of support for the historic patient and provider protections built into ... August 22, 2013 General Advocacy, MICRA, Medical Malpractice, Professional Liability 0 0 Comment Read More »
DHCS to implement 10 percent Medi-Cal cuts in January 2014 The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) today announced that it would begin to implement the 10 percent Medi-Cal physician payment rate reduction on October 1, 2013, for Medi-Cal managed care and on January 9, 2014, for fee for service. DHCS also announced that it would be retroactively implementing the cuts for FFS providers to June 1, 2011, when the law authorizing the cuts went into effect. DHCS said it will recoup a percentage of provider payments to recover overpaid funds during the retroactive period. These retroactive payment recoveries will ... August 15, 2013 Medi-Cal Advocacy, Insurance/Reimbursement, Medi-Cal, Access to Care 0 0 Comment Read More »
Dangerous bill putting patients in harm's way barely passes Assembly Committee Sacramento – After an initial vote held SB 491 (Hernandez) in the Assembly Business, Professions & Consumer Protection Committee last week, a reconsideration vote was granted and today the bill moved out of committee. SB 492 (Hernandez), a related bill dealing with expanded scope of practice for optometrists, was held in committee. On behalf of the California Medical Association (CMA) and the Coalition for Patient Access and Quality Care, CMA President Paul R. Phinney, M.D., issued the following statement: “While SB 492 was held in committee, patients should be deeply ... August 14, 2013 General Advocacy, Nurse Practitioners, Scope of Practice 0 0 Comment Read More »
Physicians urged to call Gov. Brown and ask him to sign the Maddy EMS Fund bill The California Medical Association (CMA) and the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) are cosponsoring a bill that will extend funding for the Maddy Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Fund. Without this bill (SB 191/Padilla), providers of emergency medical care throughout the state will lose $50 million per year that is currently used to offset the costs incurred for care provided to uninsured patients in hospital emergency rooms (ER). Without this bill, the law that authorizes the Maddy Fund is set to expire on January 1, 2014. Although the bill is ... August 8, 2013 General EMS/MADDY Funds, Access to Care, Advocacy, Emergency Rooms 0 0 Comment Read More »
Nurse practitioner scope-of-practice bill fails in committee A bill that would give California's nurse practitioners more autonomy failed on a vote of 6-3 Tuesday in an Assembly Business, Professions and Consumer Protection Committee. The bill (SB 491) would allow nurse practitioners to open practices without any oversight from a trained medical doctor and prescribe dangerous, addictive drugs without supervision. Although the bill failed to pass committee today, it was granted reconsideration and will be voted on again next week. While an important part of the health care delivery system, nurse practitioners simply do not have adequate training ... August 7, 2013 General Advocacy, Nurse Practitioners, Scope of Practice 0 0 Comment Read More »
House committee releases bipartisan Medicare SGR reform bill Three congressional committees have been hard at work over the past few months on legislation that would eliminate the desperately broken Medicare sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula that is used to determine physician payment rates. On Friday, the health subcommittee of the U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee's health subcommittee released its bill to repeal the SGR. One Tuesday the bill was approved by the subcommittee and now heads to the full committee for consideration. The House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee have ... July 25, 2013 Medicare Insurance/Reimbursement, Medicare, SGR, Advocacy, Sustainable Growth Rate 0 0 Comment Read More »
Scope of practice bills to be heard on July 2, urge your legislator to OPPOSE these bills The California Medical Association (CMA) is urging physicians to contact legislators and ask for NO votes on SB 491, SB 492 and SB 493. These three bills will expand scope of practice of nonphysician practitioners and remove necessary physician supervision, ultimate harming patients and decreasing quality of care. These bills may be heard in the Assembly Business, Professions and Consumer Protection Committee as early as July 2. Senate Bill 491 (Hernandez) would allow nurse practitioners to open practices without any oversight from a trained medical doctor and prescribe dangerous, addictive ... June 27, 2013 General Advocacy, Scope of Practice 0 0 Comment Read More »
