Affairs Committee Chair Robert Duncan (R-Lubbock), and other legislative lead- ers to hammer out several physician em- ployment bills. The legislation:
• Gives some hospitals greater latitude to employ doctors, but imposes some of the strongest protections in the na- tion for physicians’ clinical autonomy and independent medical decision making.
• Allows employment by small hospi- tals, generally in counties of 50,000 or fewer, with strong protections for independent medical judgment and medical staff responsibility for all clinical policies from privileges to credentialing to utilization review.
• Requires the hospital’s chief medical officer to report to TMB any instance of administrative interference in clini- cal or patient care decision making. That means if independent physicians are required to take call to maintain staff privileges, employed physicians also must take call.
Strong but fair The TMB fight was particularly bruis- ing. But when it ended, TMA emerged victorious with a series of reform bills designed to make TMB’s disciplinary processes fairer for physicians, while maintaining the ability of the board to protect the public. TMA defeated opponents with anti-
TMA and anti-TMB agendas and won passage of bills that prohibit anonymous complaints and:
• Require TMB to notify the physician when insurance companies, pharma- ceutical companies, or third-party ad- ministrators file a complaint.
• Increase the time for a physician to respond to a complaint notice from 30 days to 45 days.
• Allow physicians to record the pro- ceedings of a TMB informal settle- ment conference.
• Allow TMB to require a remedial ac- tion plan rather than impose a fine for a minor administrative violation.
• Institute a seven-year statute of limi- tation on bringing a disciplinary ac-
2011 TMA financials
$22,982,275 Operating Income $22,695,555 Operating Expense $286,720 Net Income
2011 TMA income
62.9% Membership Dues 13.1% Member Services 9.1% Miscellaneous 4.9% Rental Income 4.4% Related Organizations 2.4% Educational Programs 1.9% Advertising 1.3% Investment Income
2011 TMA expenses
43.3% One Voice 17.9% Practice Viability
24.1% Healthy Environment 14.7% Trusted Leader
June 2012 TEXAS MEDICINE 25
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