AMA eVoice Weekly Newsletter

The legal system in health care reform

The AMA is committed, as part of comprehensive health system reform, to reduce the unnecessary health care costs that currently exist. Administrative simplification is one area where savings can be achieved, and a uniform claims form and exception process for all payers—both private and public—is one example of where we can start.

Defensive medicine contributes to the unnecessary costs in health care in the United States. The AMA has made it clear to Congress and the White House that medical liability reform is needed to accompany proposals to fully achieve savings from reducing variation in the utilization of services by following evidence-based guidelines created by the medical profession, such as those created by the AMA-convened Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement. Failure to address the threat of nonmeritious lawsuits will result in the continuation of the practice of defensive medicine that drives up health care costs for government programs, employers and individuals.

Some medical liability reforms have been shown to decrease the premiums paid for medical liability insurance. They are modeled on California's Medical Injury Compensation and Reform Act, which includes a $250,000 cap on noneconomic damages. But for some states, their constitutions make it difficult to enact such a cap.

Having a federal cap has created issues with states' rights proponents. As physicians, when we make a diagnosis and the best treatment option is not available, we look for alternatives to save the patient. And in this case with medical liability reform, we have alternative reforms that may help reduce unnecessary costs in health care due to defensive medicine.

Health courts would provide a forum where medical liability actions can be heard by judges specially trained in medical liability matters and who hear only medical liability cases. The AMA adopted principles in 2007 to assist in this option.

Early disclosure and compensation programs would allow a physician or provider to notify a patient of an adverse event within a limited period of time. Notification does not constitute an admission of liability. Those offering patients or their families compensation for injuries in good faith would be provided immunity from liability. And payments for damages would be based on a defined payment schedule.

Administrative determination of compensation would have a state's administrative entity to set a compensation schedule for injuries, resolve claims for injury, and establish compensation based on the patient's net economic loss subject to periodic payment and offset by collateral payments from other sources such as insurance.

Expert witness qualifications would provide statutory qualifications for those who may serve as medical expert witnesses at trial. This will help to ensure that the testimony juries receive is presented by an individual with particular expertise on the matter in question.

The broken medical liability system is an important driver for unnecessary health care costs due to defensive medicine. The AMA is committed to having affordable, quality health insurance coverage for all Americans. To achieve that goal, the legal system needs changes as well.

—J. James Rohack, MD

E-mail comments, questions and replies to Dr. Rohack

1) AMA shares vision for health system reform
Underscoring the need for meaningful health system reform for America’s physicians and their patients, the AMA is running full-page ads in national publications and online. Titled “Our Vision for Health System Reform,” the ads point out the devastating effects of the broken system and focus on key areas for improvement.

“This ad is a reminder of why the AMA is working for reform,” AMA President J. James Rohack, MD, said. “Forty-seven million Americans don’t have health insurance, and physicians are driven from the profession by bureaucracy, medical liability and reimbursements that fail to cover practice costs. America’s patients and physicians deserve better.”

Visit the AMA Health System Reform Web site to learn more about the AMA’s commitment to health system reform and see how you can get involved.

View an AMA news release about the ads.

2) House Energy and Commerce Committee markup resumes
The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce resumed its markup of H.R. 3200, the American Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009, on July 30, working late into the night considering amendments.

Key amendments of particular interest to physicians were voted on during the debate:

• Comparative effectiveness—An amendment offered by Rep. Michael Rogers (R-Mich.) was adopted to clarify that comparative effectiveness research could not be used by the federal government to deny or ration care. A second amendment was adopted, sponsored by Rep. Phil Gingrey, MD (R-Ga.), stating that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services may not use federally funded clinical comparative effectiveness research data to make Medicare coverage determinations on the basis of cost. A third amendment authored by Rep. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) was adopted specifying that the work performed by the Center for Comparative Effectiveness must be based on consultation with, and review by, appropriate trade associations and professional membership societies.
• Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)—The Committee adopted an amendment offered by Murphy to ensure adequate Medicaid payment rates. Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-Calif.) and Murphy offered an amendment, which was adopted, specifying that coverage waiting periods under CHIP do not apply to children who lose health insurance coverage, who are under 2 years of age, or for whom health insurance coverage is unaffordable. An amendment offered by Reps. Joe Barton (R-Texas) and Nathan Deal (R-Ga.) to allow CHIP and Medicaid funds to be used to purchase private health insurance coverage was defeated.
• Medical home—Rep. Donna Christensen, MD (D-Virgin Islands) successfully offered two amendments to provisions related to a community-based medical home pilot program requiring the Secretary to seek to eliminate racial, ethnic, gender and geographic health disparities through the pilots and to select one of the U.S. territories as a pilot location.
• Medicare physician payment—Rep. Michael Burgess, MD (R-Texas) offered an amendment, which was defeated, that would have replaced the sustainable growth rate (SGR) system with Medicare physician payment updates based on the Medicare Economic Index.
• Public health insurance option—An amendment offered by Rep. Burgess, requiring provider payment rates under a public plan option to be negotiated and not based on rates paid by another public program, was defeated. This issue is expected to be considered again in an upcoming vote on the compromise agreement reached between committee chair Henry Waxman and members of the Blue Dog Coalition. A second amendment offered by Burgess to eliminate the public plan option was also defeated.
• Medical liability—Burgess offered an amendment that would have implemented federal medical liability tort reforms, including a $250,000 cap on noneconomic damages. This amendment was defeated. A second amendment, offered by Deal, that would have provided liability protections to physicians who transfer Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act, or EMTALA, patients to more appropriate health care facilities was also defeated. Rep. Bart Gordon (D-Texas) is expected to offer three additional medical liability amendments for the committee’s consideration today.

The committee is scheduled to resume its markup of H.R. 3200 today. Track amendments and votes throughout this process.

3) Senate Finance Committee markup postponed until fall; physician groups need to work Senate offices on Medicare payment issue
Bipartisan negotiations between members of the Senate Finance Committee are ongoing, and committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) announced July 30 that the panel would be unable to mark up a bill before Congress returns from its summer recess in September. He pledged that negotiators will continue to meet during the month of August to resolve their differences.

Details of agreements that have been reached thus far began to emerge this week, although no information is available in writing. It has been reported that negotiators have scaled back the Medicare physician payment relief in the compromise package to a one-year temporary halt to the payment cuts being produced by the SGR formula. Currently, the committee proposal would provide a 0.5 percent Medicare physician payment update in 2010, in lieu of a scheduled 21.5 percent cut.

The AMA and its coalition partners will be working over the August recess on strategies to secure a repeal of the irrational Medicare physician payment formula this year. This includes laying the ground work for a Senate floor amendment to replace the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula.

As previously reported, the House health reform package, H.R. 3200, would erase the SGR debt and establish a new Medicare physician payment formula. The Obama administration has taken a number of steps this year to facilitate efforts to replace the SGR with a new payment formula. In August, physician groups will need to educate Senators about the need to scrap the SGR instead of creating another temporary “patch.”

4) AMA leaders make media rounds to talk health system reform
AMA President J. James Rohack, MD; AMA Immediate Past President Nancy H. Nielsen, MD, PhD; and AMA President-elect Cecil B. Wilson, MD, detailed the need for health system reform on various media outlets during the past several days.

View an interview of Dr. Rohack published July 29 by U.S. News & World Report.

View Dr. Rohack on MSNBC’s “Morning Meeting” on July 29.

View Dr. Wilson on MSNBC’s “Dr. Nancy” with Nancy Snyderman, MD, on July 28.

View Dr. Rohack on CNBC’s “Meeting of the Minds” with Maria Bartiromo on July 27.

View a July 26 posting by Dr. Rohack on physician blog KevinMD.com.

5) FTC sets Nov. 1 as new enforcement date for “red flags” rule
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has delayed the enforcement date of the “red flags” rule until Nov. 1. Enforcement of the rule, which requires certain businesses to develop identity theft prevention and detection programs, was originally scheduled for Nov. 1, 2008. Following advocacy efforts from the AMA and other associations, compliance was extended to May 1 and then later to Aug. 1.

The new compliance date of Nov. 1 is a result of continued advocacy by the AMA and others who continue to object to the applicability of this rule to physicians and other health care professionals. Since the rule was issued, the AMA has objected to the FTC’s interpretation that physician practices are “creditors” when they accept insurance and bill patients after services are provided or if they allow patients to set up payment plans after services have been provided. The FTC states that this delay is intended to “give creditors and financial institutions more time to review this guidance and develop and implement written identity theft prevention programs.”

View guidance materials that can help physicians prepare for the new Nov. 1 deadline. The AMA will continue to make the case to Congress and the agency that the FTC should republish the rule so that the AMA has an opportunity to formally comment and state its objections to physician inclusion in the program.

6) Learn how to protect pediatric patients from secondhand smoke
The AMA is offering free podcasts for physicians interested in protecting children from the health risks associated with secondhand smoke. Funded by a cooperative agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency, the AMA has produced five 5-minute podcasts designed to assist physicians in discussing secondhand smoke exposure with parents. Topics include health risks, motivational interviewing, reimbursement, barriers and the physician’s role.

Visit the AMA Web site to download one or all five of the podcasts. You will need to register to access the podcast and evaluation survey.

Send an e-mail to janet.williams@ama-assn.org for more information.

7) AMA Morning Rounds: just one benefit of being an AMA member
Have you been getting your daily dose of government and medicine, public health and pharmaceutical news? If this doesn’t ring a bell, then you haven’t been reading AMA Morning Rounds. The authoritative news briefing written exclusively for AMA members, AMA Morning Rounds provides concise summaries of the day’s most important developments in health care. Have the latest stories waiting for you in your e-mail inbox every weekday morning.

Subscribe to AMA Morning Rounds.

Renew your AMA membership or join the AMA and have access to valuable benefits such as this.

8) In JAMA: Delays in defibrillation not explained by traditional hospital factors
Traditional hospital factors—such as case volume and academic status—do not appear to predict whether patients with cardiac arrest at that facility are likely to experience delays in receiving defibrillation, according to a report in the July 27 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the Journal of the American Medical Association/Archives journals.

1) New study shows gays and lesbians more likely to smoke
Men and women who are gay or lesbian are more likely than their heterosexual counterparts to smoke, according to findings from a review study carried out by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The findings, published in the August issue of the journal Tobacco Control, show that as many as 37 percent of homosexual women and 33 percent of homosexual men smoke. That compares to national smoking rates of 18 percent for women and 24 percent for men in the 2006 National Health Interview Survey.

View a news release on the findings of this study.

2) Report shows half of Chicago's HIV-positive men unaware
A study released July 24 shows that in Chicago, half of all HIV-positive men who have sex with men (MSM) are unaware of their infection.

Conducted by the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) in 2008, the study also shows racial and ethnic differences in HIV prevalence. Of 524 MSM tested by the CDPH in the study, more than 17 percent were HIV positive. Black MSM were more than 30 percent positive, Hispanic MSM were 12 percent positive and white MSM were more than 11 percent positive.

3) Medical students' views sought for LGBT education assessment
A survey from the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Medical Education Research Group will ask U.S. and Canadian medical students this summer what they have learned and what they think they should learn about LGBT health and medical care.

This medical education assessment is a partnership of faculty and student researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine and Harvard Medical School. All students' opinions are being collected anonymously, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, personal beliefs and subject knowledge.

1) Next AMA-IMG Section meeting set for Nov. 6–9
The next AMA-IMG Section Congress meeting will take place Nov. 6–9 at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, preceding the Interim Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates.

Visit the AMA-IMG Web site later this summer for more details about the meeting and to download a registration form. All AMA-IMG Section meetings are free to attend, and guests are welcome. If you have any questions, send an e-mail to img@ama-assn.org or call J. Mori Johnson, director of the AMA-IMG Section, at (312) 464-5678.

2) Resolutions for Interim Meeting due Sept. 1
If you would like to submit a resolution to the AMA-IMG Section's Virtual Congress, please e-mail your resolution to img@ama-assn.org by Sept. 1.

This year's Interim Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates will focus only on advocacy issues, so all resolutions submitted from the AMA-IMG Section for the meeting must fit the following definition of advocacy: Active use of communication and influence with public and private sector entities responsible for making decisions that directly affect physician practice, payment for physician services, funding and regulation of education and research, and access to and delivery of medical care.

View the guidelines for writing a resolution.

If your resolution does not fit the aforementioned advocacy definition, it will be held over until the AMA-IMG Section's June 2010 meeting.

If you have any questions or would like to submit a draft resolution for comments, e-mail it to img@ama-assn.org or call Carolyn Carter-Ellis of the AMA-IMG Section at (312) 464-5397.

3) AMA-IMG observership program guidelines now available
International medical graduates interested in observership programs can review guidelines for such programs on the AMA-IMG Web site. Developed by an expert working group, the guidelines can serve as a template for physicians and medical associations seeking to establish an observership program to help acculturate international medical graduates to the practice of medicine in the United States.

Call (312) 464-5678 with questions or if you know of an observership program for international medical graduates.

AMA Section on Medical Schools

1) Submit resolutions for Interim Meeting
The AMA-SMS Governing Council is seeking ideas and/or actual language for resolutions for the Interim Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates that address areas of importance to academic physicians. Resolutions are due by Sept. 21.

As a reminder, the focus of this year's Interim Meeting, to be held Nov. 7–10, is on advocacy and legislation. Resolutions for the AMA-SMS June 2010 meeting also will be accepted for discussion at the Interim Meeting in November.

Send an e-mail to jackie.drake@ama-assn.org with questions or proposed resolutions.

2) Medical school receives preliminary accreditation
The Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine (VTC) in Roanoke, Va., has received approval from the State Council on Higher Education for Virginia to operate a postsecondary institution. The institution received preliminary accreditation by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education in June.

Visit the VTC Web site to read more about this news.

View a list of other institutions with developing medical education programs.

3) Study looks at understanding the uses of standardized patients in medical education
A recent study assesses the ways standardized patients are used in medical education, how programs that facilitate their use are operated, the ways in which performance assessments based on standardized patients are developed, and how assessment quality is assured. According to the findings, the most commonly reported uses of standardized patients were learner performance assessment and small-group instruction.

4) In the New York Times: Bridging the culture gap
A story published July 16 by the New York Times emphasizes the importance for physicians to be aware of cultural influences that can have important medical implications for their patients and impact the therapeutic relationship. The story noted that many medical schools and training programs have now integrated cultural competence into their curricula.

1) Medical students' views sought for LGBT education assessment
A survey from the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Medical Education Research Group will ask U.S. and Canadian medical students this summer what they have learned and what they think they should learn about LGBT health and medical care.

This medical education assessment is a partnership of faculty and student researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine and Harvard Medical School. All students' opinions are being collected anonymously, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, personal beliefs and subject knowledge.

2) Submissions for Virtual Mentor's student essay contest due today
All medical students are invited to take part in the John Conley Foundation for Ethics and Philosophy in Medicine essay competition, which is presented by Virtual Mentor, the AMA's online ethics journal. Submissions are due today, July 31.

This year's competition examines the topic of physicians' conscientious objection to discussing or providing treatment options to patients that are legal but objectionable to a physician's religious beliefs.

Visit the Virtual Mentor Web site to view the scenario, essay guidelines and instructions for how to enter the contest. The author of the best essay will be awarded $5,000, and the winning essay will be published in Virtual Mentor.

Send an e-mail to faith.lagay@ama-assn.org with submissions attached.

3) Now's the time to think about Doctors Back to School program
With a new school year just around the corner, physicians are encouraged to learn about the AMA's Doctors Back to School program and to plan an event at a school in their community.

The goal of the program, which sends minority physicians and medical students into the community as a way to introduce children to professional role models, is to increase the number of minority physicians and ultimately work toward eliminating racial and ethnic health disparities. Doctors Back to School aims to show kids of all ages, especially those from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, that medicine is an attainable career option for everyone.

What is your AMA-MSS chapter doing for your community? Chapter involvement grants are available to AMA-MSS chapters to help put student projects and recruitment events into action. Chapters are eligible for up to $1,000 per academic year. Visit the AMA-MSS Web site to apply for a chapter involvement grant at least 30 days before your event.

4) Coming soon: Season two of Radio Rounds
Radio Rounds, the first medical radio talk show in the country produced entirely by medical students, will begin its second season Aug. 9. The show is hosted by co-creators Avash Kalra and Lakshman Swamy and executive producer Shamie Das—all AMA members and second-year medical students at the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine in Dayton, Ohio.

The goal of the show is to create a dialogue about the practice of health care from different perspectives and to explore the human condition in light of what is learned from the practice of medicine. Radio Rounds airs live from noon to 1 p.m. EST Sundays and regularly features physicians of various specialties, admissions directors, students in different stages of their medical education and other health care leaders.

Opportunities exist for medical students from other schools to contribute, including as a Radio Rounds field reporter. If you're interested, send an e-mail to radiorounds@gmail.com for more information.

Visit the blog for listening options, including live feed and a list of past and upcoming guest speakers. All past episodes are available as free podcast downloads on Apple iTunes by searching for “Radio Rounds.”

5) Mark your calendars for AMA-MSS Interim Assembly Meeting deadlines
This year's AMA-MSS Interim Assembly Meeting will be held Nov. 5–7 at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston. Join the section for policymaking and educational sessions, a national service project event, the annual Research Poster Symposium and more.

Please keep the following deadlines in mind:

• Convention committee applications are due Sept. 7.
• Research Poster Symposium abstracts are due Sept. 18.
• Final resolutions with checklist are due Sept. 25; a draft resolution must be posted on the AMA-MSS Health Policy and News listserv by Sept. 11.
• Meeting registration and AMA Board of Trustees, chair-elect and regional delegate applications are due Oct. 1.

Visit the AMA-MSS Web site for more information and for applications.

In addition, the AMA-MSS is planning programs for the meeting and would like your ideas. Use the online form to submit your ideas by Sept. 7.

6) The Archives of Medicine: just one benefit of being an AMA member
Do you wish you had more published content dedicated to your specialty, capturing knowledge and perspective that span a wide array in one crisp periodical?

The Archives of Medicine offer AMA members the opportunity to have a periodical that is dedicated to their specialty, pulling original articles, case studies and insight from across the country. Whether you are examining visually compelling images that enhance your diagnostic and therapeutic abilities within the Archives of Dermatology or reading structured critiques of key studies designed for use by instructors and students within the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, you'll find something of value to you.

The Archives cover nine different specialties and include many online features, such as a monthly CME quiz, PowerPoint image downloads, e-mail alerts, RSS feeds, PDF downloads and toll-free interjournal linking to thousands of journals hosted by HighWire Press.

View the AMA journals Web page.

Don't miss out on these valuable resources. Renew your membership, or join the AMA today to begin receiving these benefits.

Brought to you by the AMA Minority Affairs Consortium

1) Association of American Indian Physicians unveils redesigned Web site
The Association of American Indian Physicians (AAIP) has redesigned its Web site, cleaning up the layout, simplifying the navigation, improving search functions and making it easier to find related stories. The AAIP's membership is made up of American Indian and Alaska Native physicians who are at least one-eighth American Indian or Alaskan Native and who are licensed to practice medicine in the United States.

2) AMPAC sets dates for 2010 political education programs
The AMA Political Action Committee (AMPAC) will hold its annual Candidate Workshop from Feb. 19–21 and annual Campaign School from April 21–25.

The Candidate Workshop is designed for AMA members and their spouses who are considering a run for public office, while the Candidate School is for AMA members who wish to become involved in the political process as advocates and volunteers for medicine-friendly candidates. Both programs will take place in Pentagon City, Va.

AMPAC covers all costs for AMA members and their spouses only, excluding transportation to the Washington, D.C.-metro area. AMA membership needs to be current for 2010. Past graduates of AMPAC's political education programs include Sen. John Barrasso, MD, R-Wyo., and Reps. Tom Price, MD, R-Ga., and Phil Roe, MD, R-Tenn.

1) Summary documents from AMA-OMSS meeting available online
During last month's 53rd AMA-OMSS Assembly meeting, the section considered 35 items of business, including principles for developing sustainable and successful hospitalist programs, protection of medical staff members' personal proprietary information, elimination of the three-day inpatient stay requirement prior to skilled nursing admission and privileging physicians with low volume hospital activity.

The AMA-OMSS participated in or hosted seven educational programs during the meeting, with two of the programs focused on employed physicians and contracting and another on health system reform.

Visit the AMA-OMSS Web site to access the meeting summary, the disposition of actions and other items from the meeting.

And save the date for the next AMA-OMSS Assembly meeting, which will be held Nov. 5–7 at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston.

2) Learn about risk assessment and adjustment models
New resources from the AMA can help physicians understand risk assessment and adjustment models. One resource, “An introduction to risk assessment and risk adjustment models,” defines the terms “risk assessment” and “risk adjustment” and provides overviews of the prominent risk assessment and risk adjustment models and their various uses, including profiling physicians. Another resource, “Terminology used in physician profiling,” helps physicians assess information they receive about physician profiling.

View other AMA resources that focus on physician profiling.

3) AMA-OMSS webcasts offer CME credit
The AMA-OMSS offers several 90-minute educational webcasts, some for purchase and others free of charge. All programs for purchase provide AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™.

The American Medical Association is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education (CME) for physicians.

The American Medical Association designates this educational activity for a maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

1) Mark your calendar for next Research Poster Symposium
The sixth annual Research Poster Symposium will be held in November during the AMA-RFS Interim Assembly Meeting in Houston.

Abstract submissions must be of original work by current residents and fellows and should fall into one of four categories: basic science, clinical medicine, health policy and medical education, or a clinical vignette. Top abstracts will be selected for presentation at the symposium.

2) Running for a seat on the AMA Council on Medical Service? Apply for an AMA-RFS endorsement
AMA-RFS candidates seeking election to the AMA Council on Medical Service may seek endorsement from the AMA-RFS Assembly at this year's AMA-RFS Interim Assembly Meeting. This position will be elected by the AMA House of Delegates at the 2010 Annual Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates for a three-year term with a two-term maximum.

The 12-member Council on Medical Service actively undertakes studies about how health care services should be delivered and financed and presents policy recommendations to the AMA House of Delegates.

Visit the AMA-RFS Web site to apply.

3) The Archives of Medicine: just one benefit of being an AMA member
Do you wish you had more published content dedicated to your specialty, capturing knowledge and perspective that span a wide array in one crisp periodical?

The Archives of Medicine offer AMA members the opportunity to have a periodical that is dedicated to their specialty, pulling original articles, case studies and insight from across the country. Whether you are examining visually compelling images that enhance your diagnostic and therapeutic abilities within the Archives of Dermatology or reading structured critiques of key studies designed for use by instructors and students within the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, you'll find something of value to you.

The Archives cover nine different specialties and include many online features, such as a monthly CME quiz, PowerPoint image downloads, e-mail alerts, RSS feeds, PDF downloads and toll-free interjournal linking to thousands of journals hosted by HighWire Press.

View the AMA journals Web page.

Don't miss out on these valuable resources. Renew your membership, or join the AMA today to begin receiving these benefits.

1) Travel opportunities available
Seventeen trips to international travel destinations will be available to AMA-SPG members in 2010 through AHI Travel.

Travelers have the opportunity to spend time with fellow AMA senior physicians on land- or cruise-based excursions to such countries as South Africa, Italy and China. The cruises will explore the waterways of Holland and Belgium, the Yangtze River in China and the passage of Peter the Great in Russia. Tours range from 8 to 14 days and include optional excursions to add at your leisure. Trips can sell out six months in advance of the departure date, so sign up soon.

Visit the AMA-SPG Web site to learn more about AHI's educational and leisure travel destinations.

2) AMA Bookstore offers titles of interest to seniors
Are you planning to ease into retirement, start a new career or see what other retired physicians are doing? Review the latest book offerings at the AMA Bookstore. Many topics are best sellers and include interactive guides for doctors considering retirement.

Brought to you by the AMA Women Physicians Congress

1) Study: Most women surgeons would choose their specialty again
More than 82 percent of female surgeons would choose their profession again if given the opportunity, according to a study published this month in the Archives of Surgery.

In order to ascertain information about women surgeons' professional and personal lives, researchers conducted a national survey of American Board of Surgery-certified surgeons who completed their training in the past 20 years. To better define and characterize unique challenges posed by a surgical career for women, the researchers also evaluated male surgeons' attitudes regarding these issues.

2) AMPAC sets dates for 2010 political education programs
The AMA Political Action Committee (AMPAC) will hold its annual Candidate Workshop from Feb. 19–21 and annual Campaign School from April 21–25.

The Candidate Workshop is designed for AMA members and their spouses who are considering a run for public office, while the Candidate School is for AMA members who wish to become involved in the political process as advocates and volunteers for medicine-friendly candidates. Both programs will take place in Pentagon City, Va.

AMPAC covers all costs for AMA members and their spouses only, excluding transportation to the Washington, D.C.-metro area. AMA membership needs to be current for 2010. Past graduates of AMPAC's political education programs include Sen. John Barrasso, MD, R-Wyo., and Reps. Tom Price, MD, R-Ga., and Phil Roe, MD, R-Tenn.

1) Recognize your mentors today
Young physician members of the AMA Women Physicians Congress (WPC) are encouraged to nominate a mentor for the AMA-WPC's annual Physician Recognition Program, a unique way to acknowledge those individuals who have made a difference in your professional life.

Nominations are due today, July 31. Mentors will be recognized in a special commemorative book to be distributed at this year's Interim Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates.

2) AMA-YPS seeks your insight on physician re-entry issues
The AMA-YPS is collaborating with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Physician Re-entry into the Workforce Project to learn more about information and resources that will assist physicians who leave and then later desire to re-enter clinical practice.

The AMA-YPS is aware that re-entry issues are a consideration for young physicians and would like your input through a short survey. Even if you have not left or re-entered the work force, or do not have immediate plans to do so, your opinion is valued.

Complete the survey by Aug. 21. This is not an AMA survey, there are no personal identifiers, and responses will be collated and reported in the aggregate.

3) Review actions from AMA-YPS meeting
The AMA-YPS Web page contains final actions on reports and resolutions considered by the section's assembly at its annual meeting in Chicago last month. Three resolutions addressing student loan debt were adopted by the section and forwarded immediately to the AMA House of Delegates (HOD). Two of these resolutions were subsequently adopted by the AMA-HOD, and the third was referred to the AMA Board of Trustees for further study.

4) AMA National Health Insurer Report Card shows improvement, more work to do
Health insurers have made important improvements in the 12 months since the AMA called for an overhaul of the industry's billing and collection process, but there is a tremendous opportunity for improving efficiency in the nation's multi-payer health care system.

That's the key finding of the AMA's “National Health Insurer Report Card,” released last week through the AMA's “Heal the Claims Process” campaign. This is the second year in a row that the AMA has released its report card to diagnose the strengths and weaknesses of the claims processing systems used by eight of the nation's largest health insurers. Other key findings were revealed in the areas of denials, timeliness, accuracy and transparency.

Visit the AMA Web site to complete findings of the report card and listen to a webinar about it.

The AMA also announced a new white paper urging the Obama administration, Congress and health insurers to consider five recommendations for bringing transparency, simplicity and consistency to the nation's multi-payer system. View the white paper outlining the AMA's vision for administrative simplification.