President's Report: Highlights from the August 18, 2016 OCMA Board of Directors Meeting August 30, 2016 Alert, General August 18 2016 OCMA Board of Directors Meeting, OCMA Board of Directors 0 Liaison Reports: AMA: three topics were highlighted: 1. An AMA Interim Meeting is slated for November 12-15. 2. Communication about the status of MACRA was provided, indicating that the rules are still in the draft phase and that the AMA continues to work with CMS to make sure that all practice types and sizes are provided the flexibility to be successful in the new program. In a comment letter to CMS, the AMA outlined a number of recommendations to help these physicians success under MACRA. • Increase the low volume threshold to exempt more physicians. • Compare practices to their peers rather than larger or more advanced entities. • Lower reporting burdens for small, rural and similarly situated practices. • Provide education, training and technical assistance to small practices. • Allow participation in virtual groups as soon as possible. 3. The steps that the Stanford surgical residency program leadership took to address the underlying issues affecting resident health were discussed. Their leadership took these after the tragic suicide of one of the physicians from that program, highlighting the need to address physician wellness and burnout in both physicians in training and practice. CMA: two major topics were brought forward: 1. The priorities for the 2016 House of Delegates were recommended and approved and include Burnout (Actionable Report and Education Session) Opioids (Actionable Report and Education Session) ACA Changes Under 1332 Waiver (HOD 203-15) (Actionable Report) MACRA (Actionable Report and Education Session) Recertification / Maintenance of Certification (Actionable Report and Education Session) Development of a 5-Year Public Health Plan (Actionable Report) 2. The Dues structure was revised to change discounts for new members as well as negotiated group memberships. OCMA Financials: • OCMA has a healthy balance sheet. • The Revised OCMA Budget was approved to reflect changes needed following the sale of the building. Physician Recognition Programs Committee Report: • The partner to publish and celebrate the 2017 Physicians of Excellence will be Orange Coast Magazine. • The time line once again involves summer nominations, applications, and selection with an anticipated celebration to take place in January. • The celebration is slated to be held at Pirch in Costa Mesa. • Physicians from the Physicians of Excellence program should be featured on the cover of Orange Coast Magazine’s January Edition. House of Delegates Report: • Two resolutions were put forward from our delegation and both were supported by the delegation. • Dr. Ted Mazer, speaker of the House of Delegates, will be joining the Delegation on its meeting scheduled for October 5 at 6:30 pm. to discuss how the Council reports and the resolution process will be coordinated. Services Committee Report: • An addition to the OCMA Preferred Business Partner Policy was discussed and approved. A clause was added to state that “The products and services are not clinical, scientific, or research-oriented and the company is not a direct provider of patient care.” • Should there be questions about whether or not a company might be considered a “patient care” company, it would be referred to the Board for vetting. Legislative Committee: • Drs. Khatibi and Ramos announced that OCMA will be hosting a fundraiser at the OCMA Conference Center for Senator Lou Correa on September 8, 2016 at 6:00 pm. Senator Correa is running for the Congressional seat vacated by Loretta Sanchez who is running for the US Senate. Senator Correa’s wife is an Obstetrician/Gynecologist and he has long been a friend of the House of Medicine. All OCMA members are encouraged to attend. • It was recommended and approved that DOCPAC funds be used to support Supervisor Andrew Do’s campaign. • Dr. Khatibi announced that a physician, Dr. Sion Roy is running for a position with the Santa Monica College Board of Trustees. Though this is not an Orange County position, it benefits all physicians to have physicians in elected positions. Members are encouraged to support his candidacy. District Updates: • The Providence/St. Joseph Health Merger was approved by the California Attorney General and is moving forward. • CNA continues to be active in conversations with staff at St. Judes. • OSCAR, a newer Health Insurance plan is gaining a foothold in Orange County. • The Kaiser Permanente Medical School is slated to open in 2019 and will be located in Pasadena. Executive Director’s Report: • The NEPO (Network of Ethnic Physicians Organizations) is sponsoring a conference in Southern California in September. Two registrations were offered to OCMA and members have stepped up to use them. • The Board of Directors Retreat will take place on Saturday, September 17 at the Pasea Resort in Huntington Beach. In addition to the Board of Directors and guests, the Chiefs of Staff from all Orange County hospitals and leaders from Medical Groups and physician organizations have been invited for the educational morning session. • A building update was provided. The OCMA Building and Conference Center was sold in February and we have been leasing back the building since then. A Building Committee was formed early last summer to evaluate the Association’s needs. It was recommended that input from the membership be obtained. A survey seeking input, opinions and preferences for the next building will be forthcoming shortly Comments are closed.