How Members Can Impact Policy and Candidates (Part II of Series on LACPAC)

Q: Why is LACPAC so important?  What do members need to know about current priorities?  With the introduction of term limits several years ago, the churn of legislators has significantly increased.  That means that we must perpetually seek candidates to support and form relationships to continue the mission of LACMA/ LACPAC advocacy efforts.  Every year, legislation is introduced that impacts the practice of medicine and the lives of our patients.   We endeavor to support incumbents and to have new legislators elected who support our mission.

As the legislative environment changes, our priorities also must adapt.   More broadly we support the improvement of public health and advocate for good health policy.  In addition, we are strong supporters of tort reform/ MICRA and do not support efforts of expansion of scope practices.

Q:  What is the process for endorsing and supporting candidates?    

LACPAC never endorses candidates.  That is the purview of LACMA, and they have procedures in place for when and how to endorse a candidate.  LACPAC will, however, make recommendations to the LACMA BOD regarding endorsements.

Regarding supporting candidates, there are a variety of ways this may happen.   We work closely with CALPAC and coordinate our donations to campaigns with them.   Our primary focus are members of the LA County Board of Supervisors and candidates/ legislators of state offices.   For legislators that we have previously supported and are incumbents, we will routinely donate to their campaigns on a yearly basis.  In most cases, this will allow us to attend one or more fundraisers with the legislator.  For other local races, this will be discussed on a case-by-case basis with the LACPAC Board.  It is common for us to host or co-host a fundraiser for a candidate that we might not normally be able to support directly.   In other cases, where a seat has no incumbent and the race is contested, we will host a candidate night where interested LACPAC Board members will meet to interview candidates and then decide as to who to support and at what level.  CALPAC will also seek our recommendation as to who to support in these races.  Furthermore, we will almost always support any physician running for office, regardless of where in the state they are running.

Q: Are candidates typically state representatives? Are there city council, county supervisor, school board, congressional candidates LACPAC would support?  What is policy relative to level of support?  

Every PAC must be registered with the FPPC.  As such, we are not allowed to support those running for Federal office:  only local and state.  In practice, this means those running for the state California Assembly, and Senate with districts in LA county along with the Board of Supervisors.   We generally stay out of other local races such as city councils, school boards etc. unless there is a compelling reason for us to do so, which rarely happens.  The recent Mayoral race and our support for Ms. K Bass is a notable exception.

The level of support is more variable.   It will be based on how much we value the relationship.  For example, does the individual sit on an important committee such as Health or Business and Professions?  Are they the Chair of a committee?  Every recommendation for support must be voted on and approved by the LACPAC Board.  Our Director of Government Affairs, Henry Rogers, is the lead in identifying people we should support.

Q: What are any new initiatives you’re leading to motivate members to donate?  

We do not have any specific initiative that we are looking at in general but do pay attention to prior authorization reform and scope of practice issues.   We can never predict what is going to become a major focus of attention.  Therefore, it behooves us to be proactive and to elect legislators who believe in our mission and will support our strategic goals.  Ongoing support from our members is critical for us to achieve our advocacy goals.   If members wait until an issue, they care about arises, it is often too late to make any meaningful impact in the voting of the legislature.  

Q: What is the process for members donating?  

There are several ways to donate.  Perhaps the simplest would be the yearly dues statement.  Second would be for them to visit our webpage at https://www.ladocs.org/get-involved/lacpac.aspx and donate there.   We are hoping to have a “set it and forget it” option in the future where an individual may make monthly donations automatically.

Q: How much are you trying to raise via this current campaign drive?

Our annual budget, that comes from an allocation of LACMA dues, is roughly $35,000.  Our goal is to at least raise this to $60,000.  Ultimately, it would be ideal if we could reach an annual budget of $100,000.

UCLA and LACMA Partner to Launch First Latinx Leadership Institute

As I’ve shared in the past, LACMA has partnered with UCLA Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture (CESLAC) to formally kick off the “Accelerating Latinx Leadership (ALL) Institute” to develop Latinx Physician and health professional leadership and ready them to guide California’s health sector institutions to positively engage with Latinx communities and California’s multi-racial future.

The program launches April 24; with personal sessions May 19th - 21st and Phase 4 concluding July 31st. View the program description here and you can contact ceslac_all@mednet.ucla.edu for more information.

Spring General Meeting

The Los Angeles County Medical Association is holding its 152nd Annual Election this coming June. Active members of LACMA and CMA have the privilege of nominating and voting for their preferred candidates for any vacant position.

This is an exciting time of year as members who are interested in holding a leadership position or who would like to become more involved in shaping healthcare policy at the local and state level should review current vacancies and submit nominations for themselves or other members to Lisa Le at lisa@lacmanet.org.

Members are also invited to participate in the Annual Spring General Meeting held on Wednesday, April 26, 2023, from 6:45 pm-7:00 pm. This meeting is the last chance for members to submit nominations for the 2023 Election. Please note that the only item of business will be the elections. Can’t participate? Members may be nominated for any elective office by a petition signed by at least five (5) members eligible to vote and sent to the LACMA offices prior to the start of the General Meeting. For more information on this year’s election, please click here. To RSVP, please email Lisa Le at lisa@lacmanet.org.

At the end of May, members can expect to receive a voting ballot via email. Please be sure to keep an eye out for your ballot and submit your vote!

CMA Data Exchange Explainer Series #2 - Data Exchange Policy & Legal Environment

Starting January 31, 2023, the California Health and Human Services Agency (CHHS) is launching the CHHS Data Exchange Framework. Over the next three years, this framework will require all physician practices in this state to exchange data with other practices, health plans, hospitals, and others. To help physicians prepare for this change, CMA has partnered with CHHS to develop the “CMA Data Exchange Explainer Series.” This series of webinars will walk practices through the various considerations in implementing robust data exchange.

In CMA's 2nd webinar, they will cover the significant policies and requirements of data exchange. This webinar will also include an update on the latest Data Exchange Framework (DxF) developments and important dates practices will need to know.

Date: Thursday, April 13, 2023

Location: Virtual

Time: 12:15 - 1:15 PM

Getting Paid: A Physician’s Guide to Taking Charge of Your Accounts Receivable

This presentation outlines the make-up of, and challenges associated with, the effective management of accounts receivable (A/R) in the physician practice. Presented by one of CMA’s experienced practice management experts, the presentation will cover areas that significantly impact a practice’s A/R and suggestions on how to address those A/R challenges.

Date: Thursday, May 18, 2023

Location: Virtual

Time: 12:00 - 1:00 PM

Gustavo Friederichsen

Chief Executive Officer

Los Angeles County Medical Association

“If it matters to our LACMA members, it matters to me.”