In spite of opposition by the Texas Medical Association (TMA), the bill to allow Lyme-friendly physicians in Texas to treat according to ILADS Treatment Guidelines passed last night -- just 3 min. before the mid-night deadline for passage!
Our Texas Constitution (Art. 16, Sect. 31) already affords us this protection, but our overly aggressive Texas Medical Board ignored and flagrantly disregarded our state constitution last year by sanctioning one of our LLMDs, causing him to close his office and retire early rather than to agree to treat according to the IDSA standard of care.
Unfortunately though, a separate bill to reform the abusive practices of our Texas Medical Board by guaranteeing fair due process to Texas physicians failed to pass, thanks to opposition by the Texas Medical Association.
Thus, it remains to be seen how many Texas physicians will be willing to treat Lyme patients for fear of harrassment by the Texas Medical Board based on trivial complaints unrelated to Lyme disease per se filed by "anonymous" complainants (ie, agents of insurance companies).
It will be two more years (2013) before the Texas Legislature convenes again to allow another opportunity to reform the Texas Medical Board.
Posted by Robin123 (Member # 9197) on :
So, it sounds like at least some improvement -
Why two years? No legislature?!
Posted by Arkie-hinny (Member # 26546) on :
This is still good news for Texans. It will affect a lot of patients, in the positive, I hope.
Posted by tdtid (Member # 10276) on :
Glad to hear this Tx Lyme Mom. Our NH Lyme Bill is in about the same spot. Next and final stop, the Governor.
Good luck in Texas with this. Moving one state at a time, but we need them all.
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
Robin .. The Texas Legislature meets every two years. Can't believe they are still able to get things done that way .. or are they??
Posted by James1979 (Member # 31926) on :
stillwater, that was a good article. Thanks for sharing it.
Posted by mjbucuk (Member # 843) on :
Just saw this headline "Perry vetoes texting while driving ban, 22 other bills." What's the chance he passed any Lyme bills?
Posted by momintexas (Member # 23391) on :
I read on the Yahoo Lyme Groups that he signed it on Friday!
Posted by momintexas (Member # 23391) on :
Supposedly it's listed in here, but I have not had a chance to read through it.
"It's official: SB1360 is now the law of the land! Governor Perry signed it (and also our identical "backup" bill, HB2975) on Friday. Attached is the final, signed version of the bill(s) which is identical to what was passed out of the House and Senate."
"Special thanks to everyone who contacted the Governor and their legislators about this bill. And congrats to all of us who worked on it - it was definitely a team effort! Later this year or early next year, the Texas Medical Board will begin the rule-making process and we will be involved in that process to make sure that the rules for approving Continuing Medical Education (CME) courses are fair and appropriate.
Meanwhile, we really need to encourage ILADS and the other thought leaders on our side of the debate to expedite the development of more Lyme-literate CME courses so that we have a wide range of course options that can be included on the approved list. This is a great opportunity for our side to put its money where its mouth is regarding the advancement of the medical science. I am confident that we can rise to meet this challenge, but it will take a concerted effort - including more involvement in and financial support of ILADS - to move the needle."
Posted by Belinda53 (Member # 32472) on :
Greenville, TX Now if we can get more LLMD's in smaller rural towns they may be some vast step towards the right direction. Praying Northeastern States
Posted by lorima (Member # 11925) on :
Sorry to say, it doesn't seem that helpful to me. It says if the doctor has taken a CME course, then the medical board has to take that into consideration when they threaten them. Of course, most (all?) the accredited CME courses are written by IDSA.
Let me know if there's something I'm missing here.