Truth in Advertising
The AMA Advocacy Resource Center's Truth in Advertising campaign highlights the need for health care providers to clearly and honestly state their level of training, education and licensing. Patients deserve to have this information when in face-to-face encounters as well as when they read health care practitioners’ advertising, marketing and other communications materials. The materials below provide medical societies with tools and resources to enact Truth in Adverting legislation and ensure patients able to rely on what their health care providers tell them.
Below is a sampling of the state advocacy tools that exist. Please contact Kristin Schleiter, JD, Legislative Attorney, with any questions related to this campaign.
Bill summaries (2011-2012):
Issue brief(s):
TIA campaign booklet - This booklet contains background information on the problem, survey data, model legislation and other resources for your use.
Model bill(s):
Health care professional transparency act
Survey:
Truth in advertising survey
Talking points:
Benefits of truth in advertising legislation for physicians
Other tools:
- "50 state survey: TIA board certification laws"
- Do you know your "Doctor?" chart and sources and citations. This comparison tool details the differences in education and training between physicians and non-physicians.
- AMA letter to Nebraska legislature LB 54 (February 1, 2013)
- AMA letter to New Jersey legislature AB 3618 (February 7, 2013)
- AMA letters to Nevada legislature SB 211 (March 27, 2013)
- AMA letter to Michigan legislature HB 4524 (April 16, 2013)
Payers and states are increasingly using data to develop physician profiling programs and all-payer claims databases. This data must be accurate and presented in a useable format to be of value in analyzing health care trends.
