PROTECTING THE PRACTICE OF MEDICINE CMA’S COMMITMENT TO THE PHYSICIANS OF CALIFORNIA The Recognized Voice of California Physicians
CMA and its county medical societies have represented California’s physicians for 160 years as the recognized voice of the house of medicine. CMA also partners regularly with the specialty societies of California, and together we stand taller, our combined voices stronger, fighting for the future of medicine and our noble profession. A Major Player in Health Care’s Top Issues: CMA prides itself on providing our members the opportunity to establish how medical care is provided in California. We do this by giving our members – from physicians to residents to medical students – direct access to our state’s and nation’s political leaders. Through aggressive legislative and regulatory advocacy, CMA has positioned itself as one of the most vocal stakeholders in the development and implementation of health policy. A Record of Success: CMA is an effective and masterful advocate in the State Capitol. Our large lobbying team is highly regarded with a track record of success. CMA was the principal mover on a number of items that will benefit the physicians of California. These include: Physician Workforce: We are committed to expanding funding for graduate medical education (GME) to ensure that there are enough residency slots to train physicians in regions where health care services are needed most. CMA was able to secure $100 million in the 2016-2017 state budget to expand the Song-Brown Program to create more residency slots in California and to open the program to all primary care specialties.
CMA: Protecting The Practice of Medicine
Medical School Debt: CMA sponsored legislation to create the Steven M. Thompson Loan Repayment Program, which provides physicians with up to $105,000 to repay educational loans in exchange for a three-year service commitment in a medically underserved area of the state. Scope of Practice: Every year, CMA defeats attempts to expand nonphysicians’ scope of practice. CMA strongly believes allowing practitioners to perform procedures they aren’t trained to do can only lead to unpredictable outcomes, higher costs and greater fragmentation of care.
MEMBER BENEFITS & SERVICES
CALIFORNIA MEDICAL ASSOCIATION
Medi-Cal Funding: CMA is a lead participant in the “We Care for California” coalition, a group working to help state leaders understand how the severe underfunding of Medi-Cal harms millions of children, seniors in nursing homes, pregnant women and people with disabilities, all of whom have difficulty getting access to the health care they need because of low Medi-Cal rates. CMA is also backing Prop. 55 on the November 2016 ballot, which will maintain the taxes on the wealthiest Californians to prevent billions in cuts to education and provide up to $2 billion annually to fund the Medi-Cal program.
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