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March 10, 2008

Good Morning,

On the day before the beginning of session in Tallahassee, I met with various representatives of our medical family to review legislative priorities. All recognize how difficult it is to pass legislation. At times, it can be made to look easy, however, it is always very hard work and, more often than not, bills require years of effort to achieve success. Our staff and contract lobbyists have spent months preparing for this session and you will be receiving regular communications on the progress of our agenda from me and from Dr. Miguel Machado, Chairman of the FMA's Council on Legislation. Stay tuned...

On Tuesday, with stormy weather in the Capitol, I had the opportunity to watch the opening ceremonies of the House and Senate and meet with legislators and staff. Dr. Machado was also making the rounds obtaining commitments for our bills. Right on cue, the sun came out and the Governor delivered his second State of the State address.

On Wednesday, accompanied by our VP for Public Affairs, Mr. Tim Stapleton, and Mr. Jeff Scott , Director of Governmental and Legal Affairs, we visited the new Secretary of AHCA, Holly Benson. Secretary Benson, the daughter of an Escambia County physician, served in the State House before being appointed last year by the Governor to run the Department of Professional Regulation. In her current position, she will have oversight of the entire Medicaid program. Her support for our initiative to improve access by increasing, for all physicians, Medicaid reimbursement, is critical. We had a most positive meeting and it is clear that the Agency is in very good hands. Later that evening I had dinner with a legislator and we discussed our agenda.

On Thursday, I had a busy day with your FMA staff initiating a number of projects and finalizing some. I assisted a legislator who was having difficulty finding a physician for his/her mother. The member remarked (and I am paraphrasing): "Intellectually I understood that there was a problem developing but now it has become personal." While it has been personal for all of us for some time, we are making progress. Near the end of the day, we received word that the Florida Supreme Court, in a narrow opinion, removed years of protection from the hospital peer review process. You can read the opinion here. Our message on Friday to our members can be viewed here.

This evening, I'll be returning to Tallahassee. I appreciate your many emails, cards and letters. Your thoughtful comments and suggestions are beneficial and welcome. It is an honor to serve our noble profession.

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The Illinois State Medical Society is supporting a bill that would, among other things, prohibit the sale of alcohol or tobacco products in any retail store that has a "clinic". Read more about their proposal here.

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This is an appropriate time to recall the reflections of Wilson T. Sowder, MD, MPH, who served under 11 Governors as Florida's State Health Officer from 1945 through 1969:

"In 1966, a Constitution Revision Commission set about developing a new state constitution to be submitted to a vote of the people. The old constitution had been in effect since 1885 and needed some changes, but those of us in public health and many others were well satisfied with the wording in the old one: "There shall be a State Board of Health and it shall supervise all public health activities in the State."

I appeared before the Commission's Committee on Health, Education and Welfare in Tampa to request retention of this or similar wording in the new constitution. I was told that the need for a department of health was so obvious that it did not need to be in the constitution; the legislature could be depended upon to establish and maintain a health agency. One committee member asked, "What's the problem, Doctor? Don't you trust the legislature?" I replied, "No, I don't"...The commission decided to trust the legislature and three years later it abolished the State Board of Health and later its weakened successor, the Division of Health." (The Journal of the Florida Medical Association, 76: 799, September 1989)