January 2008

Sovereign Immunity

FLAAEM Continues to Work with Coalition to Support Sovereign Immunity

The Florida Chapter of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine has teamed up with multiple organizations including FCEP, FMA, FHA ENA and others in an effort to protect the future of emergency medicine and the patient safety net in Florida by asking our State Legislators for Sovereign Immunity.

We in emergency medicine are all well aware of the damage the ongoing malpractice crisis has caused in terms of endangering our patients and limiting their access to emergency care and emergency specialty consultations.

FCEP is sponsoring EM Days March 10 - 12, 2008 in Tallahassee and has invited FLAAEM to send its members to support this very important cause. This conference will combine CME along with opportunities to meet with State Legislators. This is an opportunity for emergency medicine to join hands and be heard.

We encourage all FLAAEM members to be in Tallahassee during these days to assist with our push for sovereign immunity.

If you would like to join your colleagues fighting for what could be the most important recent push towards repairing our patient safety net and ensuring continued access to emergency care and emergency consultants in Florida, then please email the FLAAEM BOD at flaaembod@list.aaem.org with your name and contact info so we can provide more information on how to help.

If you have a story of how a patient of yours was negatively impacted by the unwillingness or unavailability of a needed specialty emergency consult due in part to their concerns over liability, please forward it to FLAAEM at flaaembod@list.aaem.org to help us demonstrate to our legislators the need for such protection to ensure we keep the healthcare safety net intact for our patients.

December 2007

Congress Acts on Medicare Cuts!!

6 month reprieve includes a 0.5% Increase in Medicare Payments

Thanks in large part to the many emails phone calls and letters sent by physicians, Congress has enacted a 6 month reprieve from the looming Medicare cuts that may have worsened the already difficult access to care issues many of our senior patients face.

The United States Congress has approved the "Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007" (S. 2499), legislation that prevents the scheduled 10.1 percent cut in Medicare physician payments and extends authorization for the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).  For more details, click here.
 

November 2007

Action Alert!! Medicare Cuts Looming!

Senators are telling the AMA that they have not heard from physicians regarding the pending Medicare Payment cuts. On Jan. 1, 2008, physicians face Medicare payment cuts of 10 percent, with projected cuts totaling about 40 percent over the next eight years. Over the same period, physician practice costs will increase nearly 20 percent.

Please contact your senators today and tell them to speak with Senators Max Baucus, D-Mont., and Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee about the need to stop the pending Medicare physician payment cuts. The AMA grassroots center is extremely easy to use to email your legislators. Please visit the below link today to write a letter to your senators to encourage them to stave off this disastrous payment cut that threatens to limit services available to your patients!

AMA Grassroots Center

Update on the AAPS/BCEM "Board Certification in Emergency Medicine" issue in Florida

Read a recent well written article on this topic by Mylissa Graber, MD, FACEP, Vice-President of FCEP who has been an ally in this fight and also follow the links for the historical background on this issue. Dr Graber has kindly given permission to post a copy of her article here.

Article by Dr Graber

Historical background by Dr Kazzi

October 2007

FLAAEM is calling on all members to forward to the FLAAEM Board of Directors, any personal stories you have of difficulties in obtaining on call specialty coverage for emergencies. We are currently working with a coalition of organizations including the FMA to work with legislators on the topic of Sovereign Immunity for emergency physicians and emergency specialty consultants.

If you have a story of how a patient of yours was negatively impacted by the unwillingness or unavailability of a needed specialty emergency consult due in part to their concerns over liability, please forward it to FLAAEM to help us demonstrate to our legislators the need for such protection to ensure we keep the healthcare safety net intact for our patients.