Practice Viability

TMA Moment in Time: SGR Repeal - 04/09/2024

The historic victory has roots in TMA advocacy and may provide a playbook for future Medicare reform.

Straight Shooter: Incoming TMA President Ray Callas, MD, Aims for Practice Protections, Membership Gains - 04/01/2024

Incoming Texas Medical Association President Ray Callas, MD, an anesthesiologist from Beaumont, cites as his top priorities preventing scope-of-practice creep, defending physician autonomy, and bolstering the TMA's membership.

Fix Medicare Now: 2024 Fee Schedule Solidifies Cut, Heightens Calls for Reform - 03/05/2024

This latest cut stems from the 2024 Medicare physician fee schedule and Congressional inaction, both of which further erode physician payment, practice viability, and patient access to care.

Medicine’s MIPS Win: 2024 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Stabilizes Program - 03/05/2024

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services yielded to the Texas Medical Association’s concerns about its proposal and the impact of constant changes to MIPS on its participants.

“We Can Compete:” Direct Payment Models Present Opportunity for Independent Practices - 10/13/2023

Rising health care costs. Declining outcomes. Restricted patient access to care. Rampant consolidation. Incessant physician payment cuts. Excessive prior authorization. Creeping scope-of-practice attacks.

AMA Launches National Study of Physician Practice Expenses - 10/11/2023

With the backing of the Texas Medical Association and 172 other health care organizations, the American Medical Association recently launched a survey of U.S. physicians to better understand practice expenses and to support its advocacy for physician payment reform.

TMA Fights Another “Devastating” Medicare Physician Pay Cut Threat - 08/04/2023

Despite medicine’s calls for comprehensive reform, the recently proposed 2024 Medicare physician fee schedule would continue the worrying trends of deepening physician pay cuts and increased risk associated with the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System.

Congress Weighs Medicare Payment Reform During Health Care Consolidation Hearings - 07/25/2023

Federal lawmakers in both chambers recently took up the issue of increasing consolidation – and, with it, decreasing competition – in the health care industry. Surfaced as possible solutions were several of the Texas Medical Association’s legislative priorities, including Medicare physician payment reform.

Relief in Site: Physicians Say Setting Should Not Determine Medicare Payments - 06/07/2023

Physicians want to reform a Medicare policy that allows hospital-owned outpatient clinics to charge more than medical practices and ambulatory surgical centers for most medical procedures. This pay discrepancy pressures medical practices to merge in order to protect themselves from hospitals hot to acquire medical practices that, once bought, can collect much higher fees.

A Shelter From the Practice Viability Storm: TMA Braces Physicians Amid Economic Headwinds - 05/31/2023

TMA is here to help all practices – regardless of setting or payment model – thrive, remaining steady in its advocacy at the state and federal levels to protect physician autonomy and to defend against the corporate practice of medicine.

Mending Medicare: Federal Spending Law Reduces Physician Pay Cut Amid Reform Push - 04/12/2023

A massive federal spending law took effect in late 2022, delivering a smaller-than-scheduled Medicare physician pay cut in 2023, but the Texas Medical Association and others in organized medicine continue to push for comprehensive reform.

How to Automate Payment Processes, Avoid Patient Debt - 11/09/2022

Maximizing automation functions within a practice management system can have many hidden benefits to physician practices, not the least of which is saving on costs and time – and heading off payment delays.

How to Cut Operational Costs? TMA Experts Have Answers - 10/21/2022

The cost-conscious physician trying to cut expenses can start by looking around the office.

New TMA Committee Aims to Protect Private Practice - 10/18/2022

Private practices across Texas face the same threats as their larger counterparts: successive physician pay cuts, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and rising inflation. But they lack access to the same resources when dealing with them. The Texas Medical Association is dedicated to helping them keep their doors open, which led to the formation of a new Ad Hoc Committee on Independent Physician Practice.

You've Got Direct Mail: Direct Messaging Offers Practice Benefits - 10/03/2022

Direct messaging is a low-cost, electronic communication method similar to email that allows physicians to exchange protected health information over the internet in a secure, HIPAA-compliant manner.

Ask the Expert About Managing Operating Costs - 09/25/2022

Learn how to best manage operating costs in the Texas Medical Association’s next Ask the Expert session on Sept. 29 at noon CT.

New TMA Committee to Bolster Private Practices - 08/29/2022

The COVID-19 pandemic and a recent spike in inflation are just the latest in a string of pressures that are increasingly driving private practices in Texas and across the nation out of business – a trend the Texas Medical Association is aiming to reverse through the formation of a new Ad Hoc Committee on Independent Physician Practices.

Nickel and Dimed: Physicians Can Avoid Electronic Credit Cards and Their Fees - 07/29/2022

Some small medical insurance companies are trying to force physicians to receive payment via electronic credit cards, but medical practices can avoid this costly problem.

Pinch Points: Health Care Isn’t Immune to a Tight Labor Market - 06/29/2022

Health care isn’t immune to a tight labor market, but employee retention efforts can help.

Virtual Summit: A Closer Look at Primary Care - 10/08/2021

This year’s virtual version of the Texas Primary Care Consortium (TPCC) Summit – a learning lab, collaborative gathering, and catalyst for primary care transformation in Texas – kicks off this Thursday, Oct. 14, and continues on Oct. 15.

Get Help Applying for Provider Relief Funds - 10/04/2021

Planning to apply for financial assistance through the fourth phase of the COVID-19 Provider Relief Fund (PRF), or for funding from the American Rescue Plan (ARP) targeted toward rural practitioners? If so, the federal Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) has several technical assistance webinars coming up with guidance on how to navigate the PRF portal, including one this Tuesday, Oct. 5, from 2- to 3 pm CT.

Sixteen Ways to Save Money in Your Practice - 09/23/2021

Looking for ways to trim practice expenses? Here are some easy suggestions for saving a little here and a little there. It can add up.

Tell HHSC: How Has COVID-19 Impacted Your Practice? - 11/09/2020

Have unexpected technology costs and staffing changes had a substantial impact on your practice during the pandemic? Have inpatient and outpatient services fluctuated? Do you use telemedicine? The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) wants to know and invites physicians to participate in its 2020 COVID-19 Impact Survey.

Road to Recovery: COVID-19 Tests, Bends, and Breaks Texas Practices - 10/27/2020

Ricardo Garza, MD, was still walking the tightrope: standing, but unable to withstand another gust of wind. COVID-19 swept away about 35% of the San Antonio solo cardiologist’s practice revenue, and that was just what he could calculate as he waited for insurers to process straggling claims. But he had returned to in-office operations without any layoffs. While some practices are surviving – and trying their best to prepare for future threats – others weren’t so lucky. On-the-ground experiences align with the Texas Medical Association’s Practice Viability Survey in showing COVID-19 was, and still is, a disruptor unlike any other – challenging or torpedoing the viability of various practice types.

'This Makes Me Feel More Alive': Catching COVID-19 Helped Physician Find New Ways to Help Patients - 10/27/2020

Catching COVID-19 helped family physician Tim Martindale, MD, find new ways to help his patients.