Amador County – The California Legislature is considering an assembly bill that would overturn current law and allow rural hospitals the freedom to directly hire employees. Public Health Officer Dr. Bob Hartmann says this would be a great benefit in helping to attract doctors to Sutter Amador hospital in Jackson. Assembly Bills 646 and 648, currently being reviewed as companion legislation, will allow publicly run hospitals to hire doctors and rural hospitals to become direct employers of their own physicians, respectively. Both are being pushed by the California Hospital Association. AB 648 would also require a rural hospital to develop and implement a policy regarding the independent medical judgment of the physician. Under current California law, rural hospitals are banned from making direct hires. Sutter Amador currently relies on contract arrangements with private-practice physicians to assist in its servicing needs. Under the current structure, Sutter Amador doctors practice as consultants. Hartmann previously told the Sacramento Bee that “physicians in rural areas make significantly less money than doctors in the urban areas.” He hopes the new legislation will allow Sutter Amador the flexibility to attract doctors with the promise of a steady income. “Physicians coming out of medical school are hesitant about the risks of operating their own business,” said Sutter Amador Hospital CEO Anne Platt, before the Board of Supervisors last year. “If a hospital is able to employ a physician, it can provide security and health insurance that would be difficult to obtain otherwise,” she added. The Amador County Commission on Aging told TSPN that attracting quality care to our area is all the more important because we have one of the highest county populations over age 65. But the California Medical Association (CMA) is arguing that this legislation will give hospitals the power to control doctors’ medical decisions. Platt said she has “never seen that situation” and “if there were a situation where a physician were being dictated to, the physician would leave.” Hartmann said the “concern is finding younger doctors to replace us.” He said 90 percent go into larger, more established groups like Kaiser Permanente. AB 646 is currently before the Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee, while AB 648 is expected to be discussed shortly. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.-
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Amador County – The California Legislature is considering an assembly bill that would overturn current law and allow rural hospitals the freedom to directly hire employees. Public Health Officer Dr. Bob Hartmann says this would be a great benefit in helping to attract doctors to Sutter Amador hospital in Jackson. Assembly Bills 646 and 648, currently being reviewed as companion legislation, will allow publicly run hospitals to hire doctors and rural hospitals to become direct employers of their own physicians, respectively. Both are being pushed by the California Hospital Association. AB 648 would also require a rural hospital to develop and implement a policy regarding the independent medical judgment of the physician. Under current California law, rural hospitals are banned from making direct hires. Sutter Amador currently relies on contract arrangements with private-practice physicians to assist in its servicing needs. Under the current structure, Sutter Amador doctors practice as consultants. Hartmann previously told the Sacramento Bee that “physicians in rural areas make significantly less money than doctors in the urban areas.” He hopes the new legislation will allow Sutter Amador the flexibility to attract doctors with the promise of a steady income. “Physicians coming out of medical school are hesitant about the risks of operating their own business,” said Sutter Amador Hospital CEO Anne Platt, before the Board of Supervisors last year. “If a hospital is able to employ a physician, it can provide security and health insurance that would be difficult to obtain otherwise,” she added. The Amador County Commission on Aging told TSPN that attracting quality care to our area is all the more important because we have one of the highest county populations over age 65. But the California Medical Association (CMA) is arguing that this legislation will give hospitals the power to control doctors’ medical decisions. Platt said she has “never seen that situation” and “if there were a situation where a physician were being dictated to, the physician would leave.” Hartmann said the “concern is finding younger doctors to replace us.” He said 90 percent go into larger, more established groups like Kaiser Permanente. AB 646 is currently before the Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee, while AB 648 is expected to be discussed shortly. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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