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Campaign Activities & Updates
Use the resources on this page to keep abreast of the finer points of the MLR Campaign.
Update
Update
MLR
Campaign Update: Still a Long Way to Go*
By
Brenda Williams
Although
it’s been on the legislative docket for three years, the
campaign for Medical Liability Reform began in earnest a year
ago with a landmark Town Hall meeting in
Twelve
months later, the MLR Campaign has made some big strides but
still has a long way to go. “Our sponsors warned us at that
meeting that it could take some time,” recalled Gary Zelizer,
TMA director of Government Affairs.
From
January through May 2005, TMA and other MLR supporters worked
to educate lawmakers about the coming healthcare crisis, and
countered arguments from opponents – mainly trial attorneys
– that there would be no crisis. As expected, the MLR bill
was discussed but never formally addressed by the House and
Senate Judiciary Committees.
What's Happening?
Throughout
2005, TMA launched three of the five components of the MLR
campaign. The components are:
Grassroots – an individualized grassroots action plan was drafted for each component medical society (CMS), which included mobilizing their members to make phone calls, send e-mails, write letters and schedule time to meet with legislators. “To varying degrees, all the CMS groups have begun implementation of this plan,” said Assistant Government Affairs Director Julie Griffin.
Fundraising – the MLR Campaign fund that began at the January Town Hall Meeting with individual donations from attending doctors was expanded to include fundraising goals for each CMS, based on their share of TMA membership, along with efforts to bring in funds from other groups in favor of MLR. The TMA Alliance was given the task of working with CMS groups to make sure fundraising stayed at the forefront. The response so far? “Great, but we’re still in fundraising mode,” said Griffin, who said she’s proud of efforts by the Alliance and CMS groups so far, particularly Fentress County, the first to reach its fundraising goal, as well as strong campaigning and significant progress toward reaching individual goals by The Memphis Medical Society, Consolidated Medical Assembly of West Tennessee and Sullivan County Medical Society.
Allied
Development – TMA began building a coalition of organizations that want to see medical liability reform in Tennessee; the
coalition now includes 32 partner organizations, offering
support through financial, lobbying, grassroots and in-kind
contributions. “Prior to 2006, these organizations were
fragmented, each submitting their own legislation, which
clearly led to less effective and divided results,” said
Zelizer. “Now we’re not working separately; we’re
working together on one bill,” added
Patient Advocacy – These efforts are expected to kick off in early 2006, led by the Tennessee Medical Group Management Association (TMGMA), one of the MLR Coalition partners. A patient action toolkit is planned to help doctors engage their patients in the fight for medical liability reform.
Media/Public Relations – The final component of the campaign, TMA members will soon find their MLR efforts backed by a full-fledged media campaign, including but not limited to radio and newspaper ads and stories, letters to the editor, advertising and campaign items in doctors’ offices to help patients understand the toll frivolous lawsuits in Tennessee have on their access to healthcare and the additional healthcare costs they incur. But if this story is to be spread to Tennesseans through mass communication, funding will be key to the type and frequency of media we will be able to afford.
In
the meantime, TMA has mobilized its internal organization on
behalf of MLR. The Board of Trustees appointed an MLR
Steering Committee to oversee all aspects
of the Campaign. Chairman Michael Minch, MD, said the panel
meets monthly to keep tabs on fundraising efforts, help draft
the final bill and hone the MLR message that will be
communicated to legislators and the public.
As
a retired surgeon who was sued once during his 19 years of practice (the case was dropped after a
seven-year legal battle), Dr. Minch said the experience helped
to cement his resolve to fix the broken malpractice system in
During
the month of November 2005, TMA doctors were surveyed to find out how the state’s liability climate is impacting
the way they care for patients. “We got an unbelievable
response from the physician community,” said Zelizer, adding
that one of the most telling statistics was the fact that more
than 80 percent of responding doctors said they practice
“defensive medicine,” ordering tests, doing procedures or
otherwise changing the way they care for patients in order to
protect themselves from legal action. Zelizer said information
gleaned from the survey will be utilized in this year’s
legislative efforts. “It will help us demonstrate to
legislators that the physician community has already started
to make some changes and it will only be exacerbated if action
is not taken,” he said.
Results
of the survey, along with other data, have been submitted to
the American Medical Association in order to reassess
Will It Work?
The
chances of passage in 2006 are good only through a concerted effort and hard work on all fronts. That
consensus from TMA lobbyists and Dr. Minch, as well as doctors
heading up TMA’s Committee on Legislation and IMPACT (Independent Medicine's Political Action Committee - Tennessee).
Legislative
Committee Chair Michael McAdoo, MD, said all practicing
physicians in the state need to be mobilized, which means TMA
members need to be talking about this issue “point blank”
with their non-member colleagues.
“It
may not be the (rising malpractice) premium that’s the
premier issue, but what they have to do to try to prevent
lawsuits or cover themselves,” he said, advising that
instead of dollars, the conversation should focus on what
doctors are doing – extra tests, for example – or what
they’re not doing
– high-risk procedures, etc. – because of the current
malpractice climate.
IMPACT
Chair Timothy Linder, MD, said he thinks dollars are a valid
argument, specifically the dollars that are not paid to malpractice victims. “Fifty-five percent of all malpractice dollars go to
lawyers, and only 23 percent is going to injured patients,”
he said, citing a recent New
York Times article. “That’s a broken system in and
of itself.” He said that may be a more compelling argument
for lawmakers who are listening to MLR opponents and are not
convinced of a looming healthcare crisis.
Either
way, Dr. Linder said it will take tireless campaigning on the
part of doctors across the state.
“They
can donate to the cause, they can call their
representative,” he suggested. “If their representative is
an opponent, it would be nice for doctors to be telling them,
‘I feel this is a big issue and I want you to know it’s
important to me.’”
Doctors
can also show up for Physician
Tuesdays on the Hill in 2006, added Dr. Minch,
who said packing key committee hearings with white coats every
Tuesday during the legislative session will illustrate the
commitment doctors have to the issue.
While
rallying the troops, MLR leaders are also emphasizing the
political realities.
“It’s
hard to know how far this legislation will go this year,”
said Dr. Minch, who said he is optimistic about the chances of
passage but pragmatic about the hurdles, including the
entrenched support trial lawyers already have in the General
Assembly. “We’ve spent a lot of time trying to figure out
the best way to get over those hurdles and convince those who
have the voting power to see the dangers of doing nothing,”
he said.
Above all, MLR supporters should not get discouraged.
“Many
states never pass it the first time and this is our third
year; our supporters do need to understand it is an ongoing
process,” Dr. Linder cautioned. “Our work’s cut out for
us and the cards are stacked against us, but we’re in this
for the long haul.”
For
information and resources to help you get involved in passing
medical liability reform in
*Published
in Tennessee
Medicine, January 2006, pp. 628-630.
The Tennessee Medical Association and
State Volunteer Mutual Insurance Company have partnered in a
targeted education program to increase awareness regarding the
need for medical liability reform (MLR) in our state. Our
campaign has conducted research to determine how
On
Capitol Hill in Nashville, TMA
members told personal stories of a potential access-to-care
crisis in
In
January 2005, a Town Hall Meeting kicked off 2005 medical
liability reform campaign activities, building on our
successful education efforts. The consumer recognizes the
potential danger of an access crisis and the need for relief
from staggering lawsuits and growing insurance premiums. The
Association is prepared to move forward with legislation and
an aggressive communications campaign to reach the goal of
true medical liability reform in
Campaign
Initiatives
Enhanced
Legal and Government Affairs Assistance
Increase
TMA representation on Capitol Hill to increase opportunities for
dialogue with state policymakers. Develop substantial
programs to educate lawmakers more on MLR and the consequences
of failing to adopt reforms. Supplement/enhance
TMA lobbying and legal expertise.
Advertising Conduct
statewide public ad campaign to reach both legislators and
constituents in key districts encompassing television, newspapers, radio, and cable.
Targets would be major population bases in addition to home
district media of key legislators.
Public Relations & Grassroots Ongoing
communications program with all target audiences: TMA members,
SVMIC policyholders who are not TMA members, MLR ally
organizations, legislators and news media, including regular
coalition communications, media relations, editorial board
meetings, news generation and feature story development.
Ally
Development
Continue
to develop our base of support from associated healthcare and
business organizations by continuing personal
organization-to-organization meetings, speaker requests, and
advocacy support materials for distribution.
Research Scheduled
research and polling to test TMA messages and ensure that
target audiences are receiving messages and view favorably.
Poll legislative constituents as key committee and floor votes
approach. Test advertising messages.
Currently, about 50 organizations have committed to support and work for
passage of MLR in
Tennessee Medical Association (TMA) Tennessee Medical Association Alliance (TMAA) Tennessee Medical Group Management Association (TMGMA) State Volunteer Mutual Insurance Company (SVMIC) BlueCross/BlueShield of Tennessee (BCBST) Community Health Systems (CHS) Children’s
Hospital Alliance of Tennessee (CHAT) Freestanding Ambulatory Surgical Centers of Tennessee (FASCA) Hospital Corporation of America/Tri-Star Health System (HCA) Hospital Alliance of Tennessee (HAT) Methodist Healthcare – Memphis Mountain States Health Alliance (MSHA) Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce National Healthcare Corporation (NHC) National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PHRMA) Rural Health Association of Tennessee (RHAT) Schering Plough Government Affairs Senior Citizens Services, Inc. Tennessee Academy of Family Physicians (TAFP) Tennessee Academy of Ophthalmology (TAO) Tennessee Academy of Physician Assistants (TAPA) Tennessee Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (TAHSA) Tennessee Association of Long Term Care Physicians Tennessee Association of Mental Health Organizations (TAMHO) Tennessee Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
(TAAP) Tennessee Chapter of the American College of Physicians Tennessee Chapter of the American College of Surgeons (TACS) Tennessee College of Emergency Physicians (TCEP) Tennessee Dental Association (TDA) Tennessee Dental Hygienists' Association (TDHA) Tennessee Group Practice Coalition for Advocacy (TGPCA) Tennessee Health Care Association (THCA) Tennessee Health Information Management Association Tennessee Hospital Association (THA) Tennessee Nurses Association (TNA) Tennessee Orthopedic Association (TOA) Tennessee Osteopathic Medical Association (TOMA) Tennessee Pharmacists
Association (TPA) Tennessee Podiatric Medical Association (TPMA) Tennessee Psychiatric Association (TPA) Tennessee Section - American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (TACOG) Tennessee Society of Anesthesiologists (TSA) Tennessee Society of Geriatrics Tennessee Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (TSOMS)
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