In late July, HCMS called a meet- ing of our Executive Committee, the firefighters union, and the city le- gal department and secured such an agreement. HCMS saw an opportunity to assist in the passage of the legislation, HR 1693, which had been filed by Repre- sentative Ehrlich on May 5, 1999. The bill was referred to the House Com- mittee on Education and the Work- force, but none of the cosponsors were on that committee or among the House leadership. Phone calls indicat- ed members of the Texas delegation were not familiar with the bill. I was coincidentally scheduled to
be in Washington, D.C., in late May for a congressional visit. Dan Finch, associate director of HCMS at the time, arranged for me to meet with Don Carlson, chief of staff for Rep. Bill Archer (R-Texas), chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, and oth- er members of the Texas delegation.
The meeting was productive, and within two weeks the number of co- sponsors had doubled, including some members of the committee. The best news came on Aug. 1, 1999, when we received word Representative Archer supported the bill and had requested to be listed as a cosponsor. Bipartisan support for the bill grew with the en- tire Texas delegation in favor. At a sub- sequent meeting with Majority Whip Tom DeLay, we felt confident the mea- sure would be presented to the House for a vote in that session. On Nov. 4, 1999, the House unani- mously approved the passage of HR 1693, and days later, the Senate ap- proved the bill by a voice vote. Presi- dent Bill Clinton signed the bill on Dec. 9, and it amended the FLSA by adding paramedics, EMTs, rescue workers, ambulance personnel, and hazardous material workers to the list of those eligible for what is known as the act’s “firefighters exemption.”
All that work resulted in the pro- tection of the ability of EMS person- nel affiliated with fire departments to obtain work schedules consistent with their needs, to facilitate the staffing of emergency services, and to protect the high quality of emergency services in Houston and throughout the nation. The medical community — by building coalitions, pursuing outside expertise about complex issues, and depending on long-standing positive relation- ships with our elected officials — was part of the solution to a critical health care issue.
CARLOS R. HAMILTON JR., MD, a Houston endocrinologist, was HCMS president in 1999 and a member of the TEXPAC Board of Directors from 1988 to 2001.
recommendation: Test everyone born from
CDC 1945-1965 for Hepatitis C
People born from 1945-1965 account for 3 out of every 4 people with Hepatitis C, and more are unaware of their infection.
Testing only patients with elevated ALT’s may miss 50% of infection
Hepatitis C is a leading cause of liver cancer and liver transplants
Care and treatment can help prevent Hepatitis C-related disease and deaths
12 TEXAS MEDICINE July 2015
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