Proposals and Resolutions

Most of the proposals and resolutions that are brought up in the House of Delegates are important and worth considering. They are written up by medical societies across the Commonwealth by physicians who see a need or a problem that needs to be fixed. 

Here is the process by which laws can be changed...

First, a proposal is written that follows a certain protocol. These all should be submitted before the end of May so they can be presented and discussed at the Advocacy Summit in Richmond in June. 

Then a resolution is written, again following a particular format, which is then presented at the House of Delegates Session in October at the Annual MSV Meeting, and brought up for discussion and then a vote. Our CVMS Delegates support the proposal and vote in favor of its passing since they are representing CVMS members from which the proposal originated.

Once a resolution is passed by the House of Delegates, it becomes MSV Policy. These policies are then presented to Virginia State Legislators who then decide whether to formulate it into a "Bill" which will then be presented to the State Legislature when it is  in session. There will be discussion and then a vote. 

This process is how we can get things done. We can complain all we want and nothing ever happens. But, if you want to create an actual solution to a problem, or to make a change to improve healthcare for patients, or to remove a restriction on how we practice medicine, or to remove barriers to quality and efficiency, this is how you do it.

Any one of our members can write up a proposal and resolution. Once you have written it, please submit it to the CVMS Board at cvmedsoc@gmail.com. You can even present it to the Board in person if you wish. We take seriously any proposal that you consider important enough to write up for us.

How to Write Proposals and Resolutions

Proposal Template to Present at the Advocacy Summit:

Here is a template to help you write a proposal to submit to the Advocacy Summit usually held in June. Any member can write this up. 

Proposal #_______

Title of Proposal: Enter the title as you would like it to appear in the materials here.

Proposal Authors: Add the name of the author(s) of this proposal here.

Presenter(s): List the name(s) (maximum of 2) of the person or persons who will be presenting this proposal at the Advocacy Summit. Anyone listed as a presenter must include their email contact information below in order to receive presenter credentials for the Summit.

Presenter(s) Emails: Enter the emails for the (maximum of 2) presenters who will present this proposal at the Advocacy Summit.

On Behalf of: Specialty, component society, practice, hospital system, affiliate organization, etc. Authors/ presenters should consult with their organization prior to submitting if presenting on their behalf, as this will serve as the confirmation of that organization’s approval of the proposal. MSV members do not have to present on behalf of any of the above prompts and this field is not required.

 Description of the Issue: Copy and paste or type in the description of the policy issue your proposal aims to address.

MSV Policy:  Is there an existing MSV policy in the compendium that your proposal falls under? This field is not required, but proposals that have a plan-of-action that don’t have related policy or contradict existing policy should be submitted in the form of a Resolution to the House of Delegates.

Desired Outcome: Copy and paste or type desired outcomes here.

Research, Citations, and Supplemental Information:

Copy and paste or type citations and links here.

Sample Proposal

Proposal #__001_____

Title of Proposal: Proposal for Removal of Certificate of Public Need Laws in Virginia

Proposal Authors: Gregory J. Warth, MD, Keith Berger, MD

Presenter(s): (Maximum of 2) Gregory J. Warth, MD, Keith Berger, MD

Presenter(s) Emails: gjwarth@gmail.com, keberger2@verizon.net

On Behalf of: Coastal Virginia Medical Society

Description of the Issue: Multiple studies that have been already performed at the federal and state level across the country in the past two decades have proven that Certificate of Public Need (COPN) laws have resulted in significant higher health care costs without improving quality of care. Furthermore, COPN laws have been proven to reduce competition in the healthcare field which prevents adequate access to care for increasing numbers of patients who need it. These laws are also responsible for lack of adequate numbers of hospital beds resulting in the unsafe overcrowding of emergency rooms all over the state, leading to poor quality of care. There has been no measurable improvement in indigent care or charity provided by the healthcare companies opposed to the repeal of these laws as previously promised. Rural hospitals, if endangered at all by the repeal of these laws, may be protected from closure by less costly measures than what it is costing millions of patients to pay for the increasing costs of healthcare occurring currently as a result of COPN laws.

MSV Policy:  Current MSV Policy is in support of removal of COPN laws.

Desired Outcome: Removal of COPN laws will result in decreasing healthcare costs and better patient care services as a result of greater competition in the marketplace. There will be a gradual removal of monopolistic trends in the business of healthcare delivery. Patients will have a greater choice for their healthcare within a field of complete price transparency, decreased cost and improved services.

Research, Citations, and Supplemental Information:

https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:us:95d62895-c8d9-49d9-bd3e-b34ca149c29c (Ohlhausen, Maureen, “Certificate of Need Laws: A Prescription for Higher Costs,” Antitrust, Vol. 30, No. 1, Fall 201.

How to Write a Resolution for the MSV Annual Meeting:

Resolution Template:

Title:

Author(s):

Whereas clause(s):

Resolved Clause(s):

References:

Fiscal Impact:

Relevant MSV Policy (if available):

_______________________

Reference: How to Write a Resolution...

Sample Resolution

                                                                                                                                 20-

Title of Resolution: Add Pizza as a Food Group

Submitted by ______

WHEREAS,      pizza is one of the most popular food items with approximately 3 billion pizzas sold in the United States each year[1], and

WHEREAS,      ninety-three percent of Americans eat pizza at least once a month[2], and

WHEREAS,      pizza is also an educational tool to teach fractions, therefore be it

RESOLVED,     that the Medical Society of Virginia support adding pizza as its own food group.

Fiscal Impact: none

Existing Policy: none

[1] How Stuff Works. (2020). 12 Facts About Pizza. Retrieved from https://recipes.howstuffworks.com/12-facts-about-pizza.htm

[2] The Chicago Tribune (June 2006). Slim Down that pizza. Retrieved from https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2006-06-06-0606060330-story.html

Writing Proposals and Resolutions Is Not Difficult

This is not difficult. Nor is it rocket science; and the beauty of it is that ONE person can get the process started. If you are concerned about problems related to access to care, about rules and regulations that prevent you from taking good care of your patients, about your loss of autonomy and about your inability to set up an outpatient clinic, and about all the things you get frustrated about every day, and if you can think of any way, small or large, that would make things better, write it up and send it to us. There are so many things that are wrong in healthcare these days. If you start paying attention to all your daily frustrations instead of just shoving them under the rug, and if we all started thinking like that, we could make a difference. Get started today. All you need is one proposal. We'll take it from there. cvmedsoc@gmail.com

P.S. Get it to us before August 5 and maybe we can make things happen before the end of this year.