Meanwhile, TMA was able to strip virtually all of the objec- tionable provisions from SB 1001, which would have allowed chiropractors to form business partnerships with physicians.
Insurers’ discretion removed While physician employment, TMB reform, and scope of prac- tice were all hotly contested, TMA leaders say the health insur- ance front was strangely quiet this session. Lawmakers did enact House Bill 3017 by Rep. John Smith-
ee (R-Amarillo) to prohibit discretionary clauses in health in- surance policies. Such clauses give discretion to an insurer’s interpretation of policy terms and coverage determinations under the policy. Lawmakers also passed HB 438 by Rep. Senfronia Thomp-
son (D-Houston), which requires health insurers to cover oral anticancer medications on a basis no less favorable than in- travenously administered or injected medications. Governor Perry signed the bill.
TMA Alliance member Einar Vagnes; Robert E. Suter, MD; Sue Bornstein, MD; and Lee Ann Pearse, MD, chat briefly with State Sen. Florence Shapiro (R-Plano) as she heads to the Senate floor.
A major in- surance-related bill that did not pass was SB 8 by Senator Nelson. It
would have established a statewide plan to improve quality and increase efficiency through performance-based measures, test collaborative models between physicians and other health care providers, and require public reporting of preventable re- admissions and complications. TMA’s role in negotiations over that legislation resulted in the addition of three important provisions to SB 8 to protect physicians in a collaborative arrangement:
• Physicians would have an equal say and vote in a collabora- tive arrangement’s governing board.
• They also would have due process protections and the abil- ity to participate in more than one collaborative arrange- ment in their community.
• The bill also protected Texas’ ban on the corporate practice of medicine.
While SB 8 went down as the regular session expired, it gained new life in the special session. In late June, the legisla- ture passed SB 7, filed by Senator Nelson, which included the language from SB 8, as well as other bills. SB 7 would:
• Establish a statewide plan to improve quality and increase
32 TEXAS MEDICINE August 2011
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