AGS Must Meet AMA Membership Goal to Continue Qualifying for Seats
on AMA Panels that Influence Medicare Reimbursement and Other Policies

Under American Medical Association (AMA) bylaws, medical specialty societies can have a seat in the AMA's House of Delegates (HoD) - its principal policy-making body - if at least 25 percent of AGS’ physician members are also members of the AMA.  Unfortunately, we currently do not meet that threshold.  

The benefits of a seat in the AMA HoD are tremendous.  AGS' seat in the HoD qualifies AGS members to run for seats on important panels that influence Medicare reimbursement, through the process by which Medicare reviews, revises, and approves Current Procedural Terminology, or "CPT," codes.  Changes in CPT codes can have a significant effect on recognizing the work of caring for geriatric patients. When creating the physician fee schedule for new and revised CPT codes, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regularly considers recommendations from a committee convened by the AMA, the Resource-Based Value Scale Update Committee or "RUC." 

"To continue to have members on the RUC and other important AMA panels, we need to ensure that a sufficient number of AGS physician members are also members of the AMA," said AGS Public Policy Committee Chair, Peter Hollmann, MD. "As members of these panels, we can represent the interests of older patients and geriatrics care providers."

AGS’ Seat in the HoD:

• Qualifies AGS members to run for a seat on the RUC.
• Guarantees AGS a spot on the RUC Advisory Committee, which makes recommendations to the RUC.
• Offers eligibility for AGS members to be appointed to the AMA's CPT Editorial Panel, which creates and revises the CPT codes for which the RUC then proposes values to CMS.
• Guarantees a spot on the CPT Advisory Committee, which supports and advises the Editorial Panel by, among other things, reviewing proposals for new codes from specialty societies.
• Guarantees a seat and a vote on the AMA's Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement (PCPI).  The Consortium is charged with developing both clinical performance measures and outcomes reporting tools for physicians.

Current AGS members involved in key AMA activities:

• Charles Cefalu, MD, is the AGS delegate to the AMA HoD; Eugene Lammers, MD, is the alternate delegate.
• Alan Lazaroff, MD, is currently a member of the RUC Advisory Committee; Holly Stanley, MD, is an alternate RUC Member.
• Peter Hollmann, MD, was appointed to a seat on the CPT Editorial Panel in 2003, becoming the first AGS nominee to be appointed to the panel. HEe was recently appointed Chair of the panel.
• Robert Zorowitz, MD, is AGS' representative to the CPT Advisory Committee.

Please support these critical AGS activities by joining the AMA today, or renewing your AMA membership. Visit www.ama-assn.org or call (800) 262-3211.