Page 38 - Delaware Medical Journal - January/February 2020

AMA INTERIM MEETING
AMA Interim Meeting Highlights
The 2019 American Medical Association (AMA) Interim Meeting was held November 14-19, 2019 in San Diego, California.
The Medical Society of Delaware was represented by MSD’s AMA Delegate Janice Tildon-Burton, MD; MSD President Andrew W. Dahlke, MD; and MSD Executive Director Mark B. Thompson, MHSA.
The AMA’s House of Delegates
The AMA’s House of Delegates is the policy-making body
at the center of American medicine, bringing together
an inclusive group of physicians, medical students, and residents representing every state and medical field. Delegates work in a democratic process to create a national physician consensus on emerging issues in public health, science, ethics, business, and government to continually provide safer, higher-quality, and more efficient care for patients and communities.
Policy decisions approved by the House of Delegates included:
STOP SALES OF E-CIGARETTES THAT LACK FDA APPROVAL.
The House of Delegates adopted policy to “urgently advocate for regulatory, legislative, or legal action at the federal or state levels to ban the sale and distribution of all e-cigarette and vaping products, with the exception of those which may be approved by the FDA for tobacco-cessation purposes and made available by prescription only.”
AMA SHARPENS POLICY TO PROMOTE REASONABLE DRUG PRICES
AMA Delegates supported arbitration in determining prescription drug prices as a viable mechanism to address the burden of high and escalating pharmaceutical prices
in the U.S. market. The new policy establishes principles
to guide the AMA’s support for the use of arbitration in determining prescription drug prices, and builds upon existing AMA policy in favor of drug price negotiation as an alternative to price controls.
AMA TOUTS PATHWAYS TO TRAIN MORE ADDICTION MEDICINE PHYSICIANS
Delegates adopted policy to recognize the American Board of Preventive Medicine (ABPM) for “developing and providing pathways for all qualified physicians to obtain certification approved by the American Board of Medical Specialties in the new ABPM subspecialty of addiction medicine, in order to improve access to care for patients with substance use disorder.”
AMA TO BOOST EDUCATION ON METHADONE MAINTENANCE THERAPY
Delegates directed the AMA Opioid Task Force to “increase
its evidence-based educational resources focused on methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) and publicize those resources to the Federation of Medicine.” The AMA board “strongly supports additional educational efforts to, at the very least, reduce the stigma” of MMT.
DELEGATES SEEK ROBUST CURRICULA ON SEXUAL ORIENTATION, GENDER ID
Delegates amended AMA policy to encourage training institutions — at both the undergraduate and graduate medical education levels — to put more comprehensive curricula into place that inform medical students and residents on how to care for populations from diverse sexual orientations and gender identities.
DOCTORS TO DEVELOP MODEL LEGISLATION BANNING CONVERSION THERAPY
The House of Delegates has directed the AMA to develop model state legislation and advocate for federal legislation to ban “reparative” or “conversion” therapy for sexual orientation or gender identity.
PROTECTING RESIDENTS, FELLOWS DISPLACED BY HOSPITAL CLOSURES
In light of the recent closure of Hahnemann University Hospital, which displaced more than 570 residents and fellows, the AMA adopted policy aimed at ensuring residents and fellows impacted by unexpected teaching hospital closures are financially and professionally protected.
SUNNY SPOTS SHOULD DISPENSE FREE SUNSCREEN
Delegates adopted new policy as part of a successful skin- cancer prevention strategy, to support free public sunscreen programs that provide SPF 15 or higher in specially targeted public spaces.
MHEALTH APPS SHOULD BE ACCESSIBLE TO ALL PATIENTS
AMA will encourage “the development of mobile health applications that employ linguistically appropriate and culturally informed health content tailored to linguistically and/or culturally diverse backgrounds, with emphasis on underserved and low-income populations.”
Learn more about actions at the 2019 AMA Interim Meeting on the AMA’s website, www.ama-assn.org.
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Del Med J | January/February 2020 | Vol. 92 | No. 1