Last weekend, leaders in the physician community came together to discuss the issues they will be facing during the upcoming legislative short session and in the future. The NCMS hosted the event at its headquarters in Raleigh. More than 70 physicians and advocates from a wide range of specialties attended, including representatives from 24 various organizations.   

The agenda covered a broad range of issues affecting the daily practice of medicine and the changing health care environment. The purpose of the meeting was to generate a dialogue among physicians about the effects of legislation, payor issues, and mutual short- and long-term goals. Discussion focused on the following issues expected to surface during the legislative session convening in May:

• Budget/Medicaid – Preservation of Medicaid provider rates, Community Care of NC (CCNC) savings
• Mental Health – Management, reimbursement issues, lack of options for patients, transition from local management entities (LMEs) to managed care organizations (MCOs)
• Reimbursement / Insurance Regulation – The establishment of a state-run health benefits exchange,  fair contracting between payors and providers, necessary steps to amend contracts
• Accountable Care – The movement toward accountable care models, shared savings, and the new frontier of physician payment structures
• Scope of Practice – Licensure efforts by naturopathic medicine, lay midwives, and pharmacist injections
• Public Health – Tanning bed bill, nurse whistleblower bill
• Certificate of Need – NCMS policy in changes to Certificate of Need (CON)
• Medical Liability Reform – Importance of protecting 2011 reforms, expectation for activity in this area

Many physicians used this opportunity to recruit their peers to assist different specialties on issues not commonly addressed by others.  This important partnership opportunity is foundational to the overall goal of presenting a unified physician voice at the General Assembly.  Attendees were especially engaged in the conversation about moving health care delivery toward accountable care since this is timely and has a dramatic impact on reimbursement.  For more information on NCMS efforts in accountable care, click here.

The meeting was moderated by NCMS President Robert Monteiro, MD, who applauded the efforts of physician groups to work together (see the video below).

For more information about any of these topics or similar meetings, contact the NCMS Government Affairs Department.  We would be happy to hear from you and to speak with your medical practice about these issues and how you can get involved.