Help Defeat AB 646 and AB 648!

We need your help to defeat these bills!

AB 646 (Swanson) and AB 648 (Chesbro), two bills that would erode the patient protections of the bar on the corporate practice of medicine in California, have passed out of the Assembly and are moving to the Senate. AB 646 is sponsored by AFSCME, a labor union interested in unionizing doctors; AB 648 is sponsored by the California Hospital Association, whose members want to hire and control doctors.

AB 646 and AB 648 will both be double-referred to both the Senate Health Committee and the Business, Professions, and Economic Development Committee. For all physicians, we ask that you CALL, EMAIL, or FAX Senator Mark Wyland and urge him to Vote No on AB 646 and AB 648.

Please be advised that the unions and hospitals are urging their members and other physicians to call to register support so your participation is absolutely necessary so legislators know the true impact these bills would have in their districts.

Phone calls are most effective, but emails and faxes are important too. A complete list of legislators on the Health Committee can be found here. A complete list of legislators on the Business, Professions, and Economic Development Committee can be found here.

To the extent possible, please let CMA know what calls, emails, and faxes you are able to generate. This is critical information for CMA's lobbyists when they speak to legislators. If you choose to submit an email or fax to your legislator(s), CMA strongly encourages you to personalize the letter, which will greatly increase its impact.

Your involvement is critical to ensure that legislators understand the impact these bills will have on the quality of care their constituents receive in California hospitals. We need to let these legislators hear from as many doctors as possible that these bills are bad for patients (their constituents).

More information on these bills can be found on the CMA website.

TALKING POINTS

1. The ban on corporations practicing medicine is an important protection for patients in California hospitals. This protection ensures that those who make decisions that affect the provision of medical services (1) understand the quality of care implications of that medical service; (2) have a professional ethical obligation to place the patient’s interest first; and (3) are subject to the Medical Board of California.
2. AB 646 and AB 648 will erode the quality of care in California hospitals. AB 646 and AB 648 will grant control over treatment decisions to hospital CEOs and administrative staff who have different motivations and mandates than physicians. This will create conflicted loyalties in an institution that must remain true to the patient’s interests, and will erode the quality of care patients receive in California hospitals.
3. Placing doctors under the oversight of hospital administrators and CEOs who are under enormous pressures to cut costs or increase revenue will threaten the independent medical judgment necessary to ensure patients are protected.
4. Hospitals are already interfering with medical staffs’ ability to ensure quality care through independent self-governance. For example, some hospitals have adopted medical management protocols that have resulted in inappropriate hospital tests, procedures, and stays, jeopardizing patients and increasing costs.
5. Allowing a hospital to directly employ a physician will NOT increase access to physician services. The hospital will push patients to their preferred provider thereby controlling the competitive market. Other non-employed physicians will not be able to compete and likely be forced out of town resulting in no increased access.
6. CMA supports policies that will truly increase access to care, without compromising the quality of care. CMA supported bills last year that will provide over $2 million dollars in medical school loan repayment for physicians who agree to practice in these areas. Since loan repayment obligations is one of the primary reasons physicians will not go to underserved areas, this will attract physicians to these areas without compromising the quality of care patients receive.