bulletin - Allegheny County Medical Society

ACMS BOARD OF DIRECTORSThe Allegheny County MedicalSociety Board of Directors met onOctober 12, 2010. Board ChairDouglas Clough, MD, called themeeting to order at 6 p.m.Dr. Clough introduced guestsfrom the American HeartAssociation who reviewed theMission Life Line Program toimprove response time to heartattacks in southwestern Pennsylvania.The program’s mission is to save livesby closing gaps in the system of ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction(STEMI) care, requiring the participationof physicians, nurses, emergencymedical service providers andhospital teams. The ACMS Board ofDirectors voted to endorse theMission Life Line Program and tosupport communications to physiciansconcerning the project.Dr. Cloughintroduced Dr.Carl Sirio, trusteeof the AmericanMedical Association(AMA), whoprovided anupdate on currentissues. Dr. SirioDr. Siriodiscussed the status on the campaignto prevent mandated cuts to theMedicare fee schedule and to revisethe Sustained Growth Rate (SGR)Medicare payment formula. He alsodiscussed the AMA’s participation inthe ongoing regulatory framework ofthe national health care reformlegislation. He thanked the board ofdirectors for supporting his campaignfor the AMA board and pledged toreport to them periodically and torespond to individual questions andcomments sent directly to him.Dr. John Delaney reported onthe Executive Committee’s Septem-ber 8 meeting. The committeerecommended the board approve thenomination of Bruce A. MacLeod,MD, both as PAMPAC districttrustee in 2010 to succeed Dr. AmeliaParé and for vice president of thePAMED in 2011. The board approvedthe nominations.Nadine Popovich and DebbieKocak, who serve as ACMS andPAMED membership field staffrepresentatives, reported on theirinitial meetings with ACMS boardmembers and their first visits toseveral group practices and practiceadministrators. They requested theboard’s assistance in identifyingindividuals and group practices thatshould be contacted concerning thebenefits of society membership.Drs. Lawrence John and AnthonySpinola reported on the activities ofthe Primary Care Coalition (PCC),reviewing minutes from the group’sAugust 4 meeting. They noted thatthe PCC would review a draft of thewhite paper on primary care beingdeveloped by the Institute of Politicsof the University of Pittsburgh andreport back to the board.Dr. Christopher Daly, chair ofthe Nominating Committee, presentedthe 2011 slate of candidatesfor office; nominees have agreed torun for election. He also noted thatthe election would be conducted bymailed ballot at the end of Octoberin accordance with the bylaws. TheBoard of Directors approved the slateof candidates as presented.In the absence of Finance CommitteeChair Alan Yeasted, MD, Dr.Rajiv Varma presented thecommittee’s report containing the2011 proposed budget, noting thatdues would remain at the currentlevel and that a modest year-endsurplus is projected. The Board ofDirectors adopted the proposed 2011budget as presented.Dr. Kevin Garrent, chair, and Dr.Amelia Paré, vice chair, ACMSDelegation to the PAMED House ofDelegates, to be held October 22-24in Hershey, PA, noted the following:• Dr. Ralph Schmeltz will be installedas PAMED president;• Dr. Daniel R. Lattanzi will receivethe PAMED Physician Award forInternational Voluntary Service;• ACMS will receive the R. WilliamAlexander Award for PoliticalAdvocacy from PAMPAC;• ACMS will also be recognized forreceipt of the 2010 PAMED Grantfor Healthy Living in MinorityCommunities for a collaborativewellness program with the GatewayMedical Society targeting theAfrican-American community inAllegheny County.Dr. John Delaney reported on thestatus of planning for the 2011ACMS Foundation Gala to be heldon March 19, 2011, at Heinz Field.He requested the support of boardmembers in securing auction items,attendance at the event, sponsorshipsand ads in the program. He alsonoted that information regarding thegala can be found on the ACMSwebsite: www.acmsgala.com.Dr. Delaney next reported on hisparticipation in the Gateway MedicalSociety annual conference and onGateway’s anticipated collaborationon the PAMED Wellness Grant.Kathleen Reshmi, ACMS Alliancepresident, expressed the alliance’sappreciation to the Board of Directorsfor its support of the group’s85th jubilee.In a written report, Dr. ScottMiller, ACMS Bulletin medicaleditor, asked for board approval ofterms for associate editors :40 Bulletin : January 2011