legISlAtIve upDAte It’s Easy to Stay Informed and Engaged this Session By Ryan James, Oregon Medical Association we Are AlMOSt hAlfwAY through the 2015 legislative session, and the OMA team is running a 160-day marathon on behalf of every physician, physician assistant, and medical and PA student in Oregon. This session, we have introduced new ways to keep you up-to-date on the important work we are doing in Salem, like the new Your Voice Matters e-newsletter. Watch your inbox for these regular e-mails featuring timely legislative highlights and calls to action. Make your voice heard with new OMA grassroots tools The OMA’s new grassroots engagement website is another great way to learn about the issues we are working on. Visit www.theOMA.org/engage to read about our legislative agenda, find information on your legislators, make your voice heard on pending legislation, and more. At times during the session we will send you an Action Alert via e-mail when we need you to urge your legislators to support or oppose a piece of legislation. Your expertise is invaluable; legislators want to hear the frontline stories of providing health care in our state. New online tools make it easier than ever to quickly contact your legislators so you can get back to what is most important: treating your patients. The OMA has your back in Salem While we hope you’ll stay actively engaged throughout the session, you can rest easy knowing that our talented, dedicated team is working on your behalf to make sure legislators do what is right for you and your patients. The OMA has introduced three bills this session to improve insurance practices and access to care throughout the state, and we’re tracking nearly 500 more. OMA Government Relations team leaders Courtni Dresser and Bryan Boehringer make the rounds at the state Capitol Building in Salem during a marathon paced session this year. The OMA’s legislative agenda this session includes: Œ Transparency in Virtual Credit Card Payments (HB 3021) HB 3021 would increase payment method transparency and establish criteria for providers and insurers who choose to use virtual credit card payments—a practice that is becoming more common and requires providers to pay additional fees as high as 5% to receive payment. Œ ACA 90-Day Grace Period Fix (SB 523) SB 523 would require insurers to notify providers when a patient who enrolls in a subsidized exchange health insurance plan but falls behind in premium payments enters the mandated 90-day “grace period” in which they must pay off their premiums. If no notification is given, insurers would be required to pay claims even if the patient ultimately fails to pay their full premiums. Œ Healthcare Workforce Institute Funding (SB 757) SB 757 appropriates $450,000 to the Oregon Healthcare Workforce Institute for data collection and analysis of the performance and effectiveness of state programs designed to encourage health care providers to practice with underserved populations or in underserved/rural areas. Other priority items we’re tracking and working on this session relate to regulation of e-cigarettes, telemedicine, protecting children from harmful chemicals, and much more. Look for more information in the coming weeks in Your Voice Matters and at theOMA.org/engage. w ww.TheOMA.org Spring 2015 21
OMA Spring 2015 Magazine
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