I paused, thinking “What?? You’re not going to take the vaccine that our country just spent billions of dollars developing and is our only hope of saving thousands and thousands of lives--including your elderly parents--and getting our economy back on track??!!!” But instead, I simply said, “Uh, ok. So--what kind of concerns do you have?” “I don’t know--we’ve read some stuff about people getting sick from the vaccine. Plus, we figure we’re both pretty healthy, and so even if we got COVID, we’d probably get over it and be ok.” “Well, I’m really glad you’re checking things out before you just jump in. Those are good things to consider.” He nodded and smiled. “Fortunately, the vaccine has undergone really extensive testing on tens of thousands of people and has been found to be very, very safe. In fact, I’ve already had both doses myself, and
only had minimal side effects.” We talked a bit more. On the way out, he turned to me and said, “Thanks so much for taking the time to explain that to me!” I felt better too, with the knowledge that I had listened instead before I preached, and because of that, he and his wife might get vaccinated when their time comes. Furthermore, while some of us physicians are on the front lines treating COVID patients in hospitals and ICUs, and others are prescribing monoclonal antibody to keep our COVID patients from going into the hospital, and others are volunteering at the Fresno fairgrounds to administer vaccines, FMMS and CMA have been very active in making sure our physicians have adequate supplies of PPE. It’s very rewarding to be part of this historic effort.
2. As our nation struggles with racial and gender issues, the makeup of our Board of Governors has never been more diverse. At a recent meeting, someone remarked that he wished more young ethnic minorities could see the faces of our board members, to help them realize that they too have a place in the field of medicine. In keeping with that theme, our medical society is supporting a new program at UCSF Fresno that seeks to
diversify their surgical training programs to reflect the underserved and underrepresented patient population that they care for. They have set up an internship program for local pre-med students that will assist them in getting admission into medical school. We hope to support other similar efforts around our Valley.
3. We are about to confront another effort to overturn MICRA Next year, plaintiff’s attorneys plan to place a proposition on the ballot that would overturn the cap on non-economic damages (currently set at $250,000). The cost of medical care would rise significantly, and as a consequence our communities would have more trouble getting the care they need. I paid less than $6,000 for my malpractice insurance this year. If I practiced in Miami, I would be paying 6 CENTRAL VALLEY PHYSICIANS
$47,000 for similar coverage. Like the COVID-19 pandemic, this ill-conceived proposition is just the kind of threat that our medical society and the California Medical Association were created to defend. To quote Benjamin Franklin, “We must all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.” I look forward to working with all of you, my colleagues, to keep our malpractice premiums reasonable and our medical practices flourishing. Spring 2021
