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REMINDER: Write Your Congress Person Today!

The California Medical Association is urging physicians to contact their Members of Congress today and encourage them to sign a “Dear Colleague” letter that urges the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to promptly finalize its proposed prior authorization rules and hold big insurance companies accountable for the undue burden their policies put on physicians and patients. The deadline to sign is May 19, 2023.  Last year, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Improving Seniors' Access to Timely Care Act; bipartisan legislation with over 300 cosponsors requiring Medicare Advantage plans ...

CMA statement on Supreme Court's order granting stay in medication abortion case

Donaldo Hernandez, M.D., the president of the California Medical Association (CMA), issued the following statement in response to the Supreme Court order granting a stay in the lawsuit against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) over its approval of mifepristone. “The U.S. Supreme Court’s order today to stay the lower court rulings is great news, as it means mifepristone will remain available in the interim for the lives and welfare of millions of people who might need this drug that has been FDA-approved as safe and effective for 23 years. “As ...

DEA publishes guidance on new training requirements for prescribers of controlled substances

On March 28, 2023, the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released recommendations and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) issued specific guidance on how practitioners can meet the new training requirements for DEA-registered prescribers of controlled substances.  The new law requires all prescribers of schedule II – V controlled substances to meet a one-time eight-hour training requirement on identifying, treating, and managing patients with opioid or other substance use disorders. Many California-licensed physicians may have already met the new DEA requirements because California requires similar education. While the California Medical Association (CMA) did not ...

New California Health Laws for 2023

While the legislature passed various new laws impacting health care in California, significant focus was placed on legislation intended to protect physicians and patients in response to the United States Supreme Court decision in Dobbs. The California Medical Association (CMA) published a summary of new laws of interest to physicians that cover reproductive rights, emergency services, healthcare facilities, and more. You can view the PDF HERE.

AMA, APHA, ASHP, Call for Immediate End to Prescribing, Dispensing, and Use of Ivermectin to Prevent or Treat COVID-19 Outside Clinical Trials

Following the FDA/CDC warning against the use of Ivermectin to prevent and treat COVID-19, the American Medical Association and other health care organizations issued a joint statement calling for an immediate end to the ordering, prescribing or dispensing of ivermectin for prevention or treatment of COVID-19. WASHINGTON, DC - The American Medical Association (AMA),  American Pharmacists Association (APhA),  and American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) strongly oppose the ordering, prescribing, or dispensing of ivermectin to prevent or treat COVID-19 outside of a clinical trial. Ivermectin is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ...