2023 Legislative Advocacy Day

OnApril 19, the ACCMA attended the California Medical Association’s (CMA) 49th Annual Legislative Advocacy Day in Sacramento, CA. Each year CMA’s Legislative Advocacy Event hosts more than 400 California physicians, medical students, and CMA Alliance members as they lobby legislative leaders in the State’s Capitol. This year we had the opportunity to meet with all our East Bay legislators to discuss several priority bills.

Pharmacists Scope Of Practice

Oppose SB 524 (Caballero) – This bill would allow pharmacists to perform tests that are Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) waived and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved. Pharmacists will be authorized to furnish and prescribe treatments for any positive test outlined in this bill, including antibiotics for various illnesses, conditions, and diseases. This bill poses a risk to patient safety by removing physicians from the care team and undermines the importance of person-centered care, treating symptoms instead of the patient.

Reforming Prior Authorization

Support SB 598 (Skinner) – This bill reforms the prior authorization process to ensure timely access to treatments, improve patient health outcomes and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of physician practices to increase patient access to care. The bill allows physicians practicing within a health plan’s utilization criteria 90% of the time to get a one-year exemption from prior authorizations. SB 598 is a balanced approach that ensures physicians practice within a plan’s criteria without undue burdens from the plan.

Protecting Physician Titles

Support AB 765 (Wood) – This bill would limit non-physicians from using terms that would make patients believe they are physicians when they are allied health professionals or other providers. An example of this would be preventing nurse anesthetists from calling themselves “nurse anesthesiologists.” The bill protects physician titles from being improperly represented and protects patients from making misinformed decisions.

Optometrists Scope Of Practice

Oppose AB 1570 (Low) – This bill would expand the scope of practice for optometrists to perform advanced surgical and laser procedures with minimal training. These procedures include corneal crosslinking and laser trabeculoplasty, among others. Under this bill, optometrists would then qualify to perform these advanced procedures after completing only 43 various eye surgical procedures. This bill would put patients at harm by allowing the underqualified optometrist to perform advanced continued on page 12

Medical Professionals

Be A Medical Missionary In Your Own Backyard

You do not need to go overseas to serve the under-privileged and poor!

Are you looking for an opportunity to volunteer just a few hours a month to help bring quality health care to the poor and uninsure d in your local community? We provide urgent and primary care in East Contra Costa County.

Please join our VOLUNTEER team at the RotaCare Pittsburg Free Medical Clinic at:

St. Vincent de Paul, 2210 Gladstone Dr., Pittsburg, CA, 94565

We are in great need of licensed Physicians (Adult Medicine, ER, GP, Family Practice, or Internal Medicine) to volunteer just 3 hours once a month or every other month. We are open on Wednesdays and the second and fourth Saturday of each month. The fully equipped, licensed clinic has 4 exam rooms, an on -site pharmacy, lab, X-ray, and diagnostic services. All malpractice insurance provided.

Contact our Clinic Administrator to learn more:

Pittsburg@rotacarebayarea.org or (925) 439-2009