Massachusetts Medical Society testifies in ’strong support’ of Senate 2145, An Act for a Caring Commonwealth
Posted on December 12, 2009
Boston, MA February 11, 2004–The Massachusetts Medical Society, the 18,000-member statewide association of physicians, today testified before the legislature’s Joint Committee on Health Care in ???strong support?? of Senate 2145, ???An Act for a Caring Commonwealth.??
Drafted by Senator Richard T. Moore, Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Health Care, the proposed legislation sets forth three objectives: (1) that there be a health care policy for the Commonwealth, (2) that it be based on clearly defined operational goals, and (3) that a mechanism be established to include all major stakeholders to oversee the implementation of the policy.
The bill further outlines 10 specific goals: patient-centered care; prevention and management; health care for all; strengthening the public health system; preparedness for health emergencies; resource stability; strengthening supporting caregivers; the vital role of health care in the Massachusetts economy; aging with dignity; and compassionate end of life.
The Medical Society had testified last September and October in support of this legislation at three oversight hearings in Springfield, Worcester and Waltham.
Today’s presentation reinforced and supplemented its previous testimony.
John A. Fromson, M.D., vice president of professional development for the Medical Society, in offering the society’s testimony, ???applauded Chairman Moore’s efforts as the principal author of ???Massachusetts – A Caring Commonwealth: The Health Care Policy of Massachusetts?? and said the society ???stands in strong support of the over-arching purpose of this proposal.??
While presenting written testimony in support of all 10 specific goals, Fromson in oral testimony focused on two of the goals: patient-centered care and the strengthening of supporting caregivers.
With respect to patient-centered care, Dr. Fromson cited the Medical Society’s ???long history of concern regarding patient safety,?? including its participation in the Massachusetts Coalition for the Prevention of Medical Errors, the Betsy Lehman Center for Patient Safety and Medical Errors Reduction, its work in developing the nation’s first physician profile system, its work with the Board of Registration in Medicine in such efforts as developing comprehensive guidelines for office-based surgery, and most recently, its effort in embracing and promoting new technologies, such as e-prescribing and electronic medical records, to enhance patient safety and reduce the possibility of errors.
In the area of strengthening supporting caregivers, Fromson said while the Society is ???greatly concerned about the status of the entire health care workforce in the Massachusetts, we are particularly troubled by the growing shortages of physicians.??
He called attention to a deteriorating physician practice environment, led by soaring medical malpractice premiums, a decade of flat or declining reimbursements, and rising business costs. He said such a situation ???has placed physician practices in critical condition, leading to practice closures, early retirements, difficulty in physician recruitment and difficulty in patients being able to find the specialty physicians they need.
??
Fromson said that two critical actions that should be the immediate objectives of any proposed health care policy for the state to address the physician environment are the passage of comprehensive professional liability reform legislation, now pending before the legislature, and the establishment of adequate reimbursement rates for Medicaid.
???It would take just an additional $30 million in state funding, along with an equal amount of federal matching support, to bring Medicaid Rates to the level of Medicare reimbursement,?? said Fromson.
???This would help many physician practices, particularly those serving the patients most at risk, to become more financially stable.??
???Both of these actions,?? he said, ???would send a heartening message to physicians that our lawmakers are taking steps to resolve this crisis.??
The Massachusetts Medical Society, with more than 18,000 physicians and student members, is dedicated to educating and advocating for the physicians and patients of Massachusetts. Founded in 1781, the MMS is the oldest continuously operating medical society in the country.
The Society owns and publishes The New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal Watch family of professional newsletters, and AIDS Clinical Care, and produces HealthNews, a consumer health publication. For more information, visit www.massmed.org
Author: Anonymous
Source: free-articles
Tags: care, care policy, centered care, health, health care, medical society, patient centered, patient safety, strengthening supporting, supporting caregivers
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