U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments in challenge to California's Reproductive FACT Act A California law that requires specified facilities providing pregnancy-related services and counseling to disclose information about the availability of comprehensive reproductive health care services is currently being challenged before the United States Supreme Court. At issue in this case—NIFLA v. Becerra—are efforts by the State of California to ensure that patients receive accurate information about the availability and accessibility of free and low-cost comprehensive reproductive health services. Passed in 2015, the California’s Reproductive Freedom, Accountability, Comprehensive Care and Transparency (FACT) Act requires licensed health-care centers to notify patients of the availability ... April 5, 2018 General Amicus Briefs, Legal Advocacy, United States Supreme Court, Women's Health 0 0 Comment Read More »
New health laws 2018: Are you ready? The California Legislature had an active year, passing many new laws affecting health care—with a strong focus on health care coverage, drug prescribing, public health and workers’ compensation issues. The California Medical Association has published a summary of the most significant new health laws of interest to physicians. For more details, see "Significant New California Laws of Interest to Physicians for 2018." January 30, 2018 General Legal Advocacy 0 0 Comment Read More »
Hospital at center of "existential threat" to medical staff self-governance files for bankruptcy The Tulare hospital embroiled in a bitter legal battle over the self-governance rights of its medical staff has filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy. The filing came just two days before closing arguments were scheduled in the case, Tulare Regional Medical Center Medical Staff v. Tulare Regional Medical Center, et al. Although the hospital is in bankruptcy, the California Medical Association (CMA) will continue to seek a legal remedy in this matter. If the medical staff is unable to resolve the case out of court, the trial court could resume the ... October 19, 2017 CMA, General Amicus Briefs, Hospital Medical Staff, Legal Advocacy, Medical Staff, Medical Staff Self-Governance 0 0 Comment Read More »
Webinar: Medical staff self-governance and the Tulare medical staff trial Medical staff self-governance is a vital part of a carefully crafted system designed to ensure the delivery of quality patient care in California hospitals. Join us for a one-hour webinar on Wednesday, September 13, 2017, at 12:15 p.m., for an overview of the rights and responsibilities of the self-governing medical staff under state and federal law, including credentialing, establishing clinical criteria and standards, organizing committees to monitor patient care, reviewing medical records, working with hospital administrators and governing bodies, and peer review, among other things. Presenter: Long Do, CMA legal ... July 24, 2017 CMA, General Hospital Medical Staff, Legal Advocacy, Medical Staff, Medical Staff Self-Governance, Webinars 0 0 Comment Read More »
CMA's Health Law Library updated with 2017 content CMA On-Call, the California Medical Association (CMA) online health law library, has been updated with 2017 content. One of CMA's most valuable member benefits, On-Call contains nearly 5,000 pages of up-to-date legal information on a variety of subjects of everyday importance to practicing physicians. The searchable online library contains all the information available in the California Physician's Legal Handbook (CPLH), an annual publication from CMA's Center for Legal Affairs. New documents for 2017 include: Promoting Quality of Life for Older Patients (#3504) MACRA Overview ... June 21, 2017 CMA, General Legal Advocacy, CMA On-Call, Health Law Library 0 0 Comment Read More »
Anthem-Cigna mega-merger compromises health care access, quality and affordability Today, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and a bipartisan group of state attorneys started court proceedings to block the $48 million mega-merger between Anthem and Cigna (U.S. v. Anthem Inc., 16-cv-1493). “The California Medical Association has opposed the Anthem-Cigna mega-merger since day one because it will hurt patients and increase health care costs,” said California Medical Association (CMA) President Ruth E. Haskins, M.D. “Limiting market competition would compel insurers to contract with fewer physicians, resulting in higher premiums and longer wait times for referrals – not to mention forcing ... November 22, 2016 Managed Care Anthem Blue Cross, Cigna, Insurance, Legal Advocacy 0 0 Comment Read More »
State's high court rules health plans cannot negligently delegate payment responsibility The California Supreme Court today ruled that health plans cannot absolve themselves of the responsibility to pay claims for emergency care by noncontracted providers by negligently delegating that responsibility to a risk-bearing organization that it knows—or should have known—to be financially insolvent. "Today's ruling is a huge victory for physicians," said Francisco Silva, Senior Vice President and General Counsel for the California Medical Association (CMA). "California's high court is unequivocally telling health plans they cannot get away with this morally blameworthy behavior. They cannot irresponsibly delegate risk and leave physicians ... November 21, 2016 Managed Care Amicus Briefs, California Supreme Court, Health Net, Legal Advocacy 0 0 Comment Read More »
Supreme Court sends contraceptive coverage under ACA case back to lower court On May 16, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an unsigned unanimous opinion announcing that it would not rule on the merits of the case regarding the contraceptive coverage requirement under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The move is seen as an effort to avoid a four-to-four deadlock. The Court instead vacated the judgments of the lower courts and instructed the courts to afford the parties an opportunity to arrive at compromise. The opinion instructs the courts to allow the parties sufficient time to resolve any outstanding issues between ... June 8, 2016 General Contraception, Legal Advocacy, United States Supreme Court, Affordable Care Act 0 0 Comment Read More »
California Medical Association joins lawsuit against Dignity Health over patients' access to tubal ligations SACRAMENTO — The California Medical Association (CMA) announced today that it has filed a motion to intervene in Chamorro v. Dignity Health, a case involving a Redding, Calif., woman who was denied a tubal ligation agreed upon by her and her physician at Mercy Medical Center Redding, a Dignity Health hospital. “California law clearly forbids unlicensed, untrained administrators from making medical decisions,” said CMA President-Elect Ruth Haskins, M.D. “It is imperative that patients and their physicians determine the best course of medical care to ensure quality treatment and patient safety.” The ... April 28, 2016 CMA, General Corporate Practice of Medicine, In the Courts, Legal Advocacy, Corporate Bar 0 0 Comment Read More »
CMA files amicus brief in support of hospital medical staff self-governance The California Medical Association (CMA) has filed an amicus brief in support of the medical staff at Tulare Regional Medical Center in its lawsuit against the hospital alleging violations of state laws when the hospital terminated the entire medical staff and its duly elected officers. The hospital has recognized a replacement medical staff formed by a group of seven physicians led by the vice chairman of the hospital board. This group presented itself as a newly formed medical staff after it selected new bylaws and named officers to the medical ... March 31, 2016 CMA Hospital Medical Staff, Legal Advocacy, Self-Governance, Amicus Briefs 0 0 Comment Read More »
