Marketplace for Medical and Dental Classifieds
Volume 16 Edition 1
Circulated to over 6000 Medical & Dental Professionals
CMA Physicians: New HHS Mandate Terms Unacceptable; First Amendment Must Apply to All The Christian Medical Association (CMA), the nation's largest faith-based association of physicians, recently called the administration's policy announcement regarding its contraceptives and sterilization mandate "unacceptable," noting that the ruling still flouts the First Amendment. CMA CEO Dr. David Stevens said, "This latest version of the contraceptives and sterilization mandate remains unacceptable. Since when does the government get to pick and choose which groups will get to enjoy First Amendment protections? Our founders intended the First Amendment to protect every American's freedom to act according to one's conscience. They didn't specify that only groups deemed religious will be afforded this protection; freedom of conscience applies equally to all Americans." Dr. Gene Rudd, CMA Exec. VP, noted, "The administration fails to understand that many employers and individual Americans, regardless of a religious label or not, maintain Continued on page 4
As President and Nation Focus on Human Trafficking, CMA Physicians Call for Intervention by Medical Professionals
Following President Obama's proclamation marking January as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, the 16,000-member Christian Medical Association is calling for increased training and awareness among medical professionals to recognize, report and treat victims of modern-day slavery. As CMA CEO Dr. David Stevens explains, "Studies show that victims of human trafficking often see health care professionals
during their captivity, yet typically these cases go unreported. Part of the reason for this tragedy is that health care professionals simply lack formal training on how to recognize and report human trafficking victims." Dr. Jeffrey Barrows, an Ob-Gyn physician who helped develop the CMA training program and the founder of Gracehaven a developing treatment center for child sex trafficking victims in Ohio, added, "Physicians, nurses and other health care professionals can literally save the lives of patients they encounter simply by recognizing common indicators of human trafficking cases and by reporting suspected cases to the appropriate authorities." Dr. Donald Thompson, a Family Practice and Preventive Medicine physician who leads CMA human trafficking victim treatment programs overseas, added, "That's why we have been developing a comprehensive online training program to educate and equip health care professionals with strate-
gies, data and protocols to help patients victimized by force, fraud or coercion in sex and labor trafficking." Besides developing its own educational program to train professionals and conducting medical missions to treat trafficking victims, CMA also has worked at the national level with the White House, the U.S. Dept. of State, the Dept. of Homeland Security, and the Dept. of Health and Human Services to help develop strategies for engaging medical professionals in fighting human trafficking. More information on CMA anti-slavery resources is found under the Issues/Human Trafficking site at www.cmda.org. Interviews with the above physicians available upon request. www.cmda.org
Income Down Among a Significant Minority of Primary Care Physicians Personal incomes dropped among a significant minority of primary care physicians, according to Physicians Practice 2012 Physician Compensation Survey. Almost 21% of survey respondents reported that their incomes dropped by more than 10% compared with 2011. Information was gathered about personal income, practice overhead, practice outlook, and other financial issues from physicians in a variety of specialties—including primary care and pediatrics. Summaries of responses from primary care physicians, which can be seen at Consultant Live, also found that: • Almost 40% of primary care physicians and most pediatricians make less than $150,000 a year. • The majority (60%) pay between $15,000 and $30,000 annually for malpractice insurance. • These physicians have taken steps to boost their revenues, including taking on work outside their practice. • Almost a third of those surveyed describe their practice's viability as "shaky," and report that they are working harder just to maintain their income. Another third say they practice is not growing significantly. • Almost 21% of primary care physicians reported that their income was down by more than 10 percent in 2012, compared to 2011. Another 16% reported income drops of less than 10%. • Fewer physicians than ever report being owners or partners of their own practices, as hospitals and health systems continue to seek market share through direct employment and practice ownership and smaller group practices consolidate. Conversely, income for physicians in other specialties (eg, OB/Gyn, radiology) increased modestly in 2012. Forty percent of primary care physicians and a majority of pediatricians make earn less than $150,000 per year, while only 29 percent of OBGYNs and 10 percent of radiologists earn less than $150,000 annually. Continued on page 4