By Catherine Zisk, MD
UVA Health System
Charlottesville, VA
On a rainy Tuesday morning on January 16, members of the Psychiatric Society of Virginia joined the Medical Society in Richmond as part of lobby day at the state Capitol. Our day started at 8:00 am, as we gathered with the other members of MSV, to talk about the bills of interest that we were planning to discuss with the legislators.
During this time, the members of MSV discussed their thoughts on the topics covered in the bills and described the way these issues have affected their practice and/or their patients. The attendance from MSV members was greatly varied in specialty and level of training (though Psychiatry had very good representation, having the largest turn out of any specialty). The members of MSV split into several small groups to be able to meet with the many legislators who would be involved in the decisions on the bills. Each group planned to meet with about four legislators.
There were several bills of interest to MSV that we discussed with the legislators. Many of the bills we focused on pertained to increasing access of care to patients. One bill of importance that we discussed was Senate Bill 98, which focused on requiring Health carriers and pharmacies to have a 90-day grace period of supplying medications after a prior authorization denial as well as protects patients from retrospective denials.
This has been relevant in the practice of psychiatry as, at times, our patients have gotten new denials for medications that were previously approved. The goal for advocating for this bill was to help our patients continue their treatments. Other bills discussed increasing access of care included increasing Medicare reimbursement and funding a Virginia physician loan repayment program for physicians in critical specialties (including Psychiatry) that practice in medically underserved areas.
Through meeting with the delegates or their staff, we were able to use our experience as physicians to describe how these bills could affect our practice and our patients, as well as answer questions about these matters. The delegates and their staff expressed appreciation for hearing our input on these issues.
We would like to extend our gratitude to the Delegates, Senators, and their staff for taking the time to meet with us during the 2024 lobby day.
For anyone interested in advocacy, participating in MSV lobby is a great way to learn from about how decisions are made about the laws that affect healthcare as well as take action to promote progress in our ability to provide the best care for our patients.
