FMA Online | FLAMPAC | EMR Florida | FMA Alliance


November 19, 2007


"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."— John F. Kennedy


Good Afternoon,

Monday and Tuesday saw the concluding meetings of the AMA's Interim Meeting of the House of Delegates in Hawaii. Measures to direct the AMA Board of Trustees to invite the Presidential candidates to address the House at its June meeting in Chicago, to immediately advance Balance Billing in the Congress and to reaffirm longstanding AMA policy in opposition to a single payer system were all narrowly DEFEATED. Disappointing doesn't quite capture the mood. Our delegation spoke forcefully in support of these measures and many delegates credited Florida's representatives with advancing the important issues discussed at this meeting. Your FMA AMA delegation elected Dr. Coy Irvin as its next Chair, Dr. Mathis Becker as its Vice Chair and Dr. Corey Howard as its Secretary. Drs. Troy Tippett and Pat Hutton announced they will not run for re-election as AMA Delegates at the next FMA annual meeting. Their service to our state is well known to all and their advocacy at the AMA will be missed. Please drop them a line and thank them for their longstanding involvement and commitment on behalf of our profession.

On Friday, I attended the installation gala of the Pinellas County Medical Association and swore in their new President, Dr. Vibhuti Singh. Gov. Charlie Crist was a guest of honor and I also had the privilege of meeting the Governor's father Dr. Charles Crist (MD, Emory University, 1960) and speaking to both of them over dinner. The Governor addressed the assembled on some of the issues facing our state, notably insurance and property taxes. Before his remarks, I was honored to present Dr. Crist an award from the Pinellas County Medical Association and the FMA in recognition of his long service (47 years) to his community and profession. We presented him with a beautifully framed print of "Caduceus" by famed Florida artist Lee Adams. The original, commissioned by the Florida Medical Association in 1956, the year Governor Crist was born, hangs in the FMA office in Tallahassee and can be viewed here.


Lissitte Gorman (left) installs Mary Jo Higgins as Palm Beach County Medical Society Alliance President.
On Saturday, I traveled to Palm Beach County to attend the PBCMS Annual Installation Dinner and Gala, and a gala it was! Dr. Daniel Higgins assumed the office of President of the Palm Beach County Medical Society succeeding Dr. Paco Arrascue. Dan's wife, Mary Jo, was also sworn in as the Alliance President. Dan gave a wonderful inaugural address--well worth your time, and I will forward this to you as soon as it's available. He then played lead guitar in the "Rockin' With The Docs" band that he performs with. This is the first time I have attended an event where the inductee also provided the entertainment. It was quite a party attended by over 400 physicians and guests, and they raised a significant amount of money for various Palm Beach County Medical Society community programs.

A recent survey of 1,019 adults conducted in late September on behalf of AARP showed that 79% of adults under 50 and 84% of adults over 50 have a favorable opinion of "Doctors." Only 37% of those under 50 and 34% of those over 50 expressed favorable opinions about HMOs. To read more on AARP priorities go to www.aarp.org/bulletin/yourlife.

Best wishes for a happy and safe Thanksgiving to all members of our profession and their families. Your service to others is too often taken for granted and I am doing my best to set that record straight. The least we should expect is that those who serve should not be subservient to those who only talk.

Until next week...


Sincerely,
Karl M. Altenburger, M.D.
President, Florida Medical Association

Be sure to visit the FMA Web site at www.fmaonline.org for the latest news updates.