Your home for health care advocacy updates straight from Colorado's Capitol Hill.
Policy Pulse newsletter: March 15, 2023
CMS launches Health Can't Wait Colorado
We need your prior authorization stories

Advocating for reducing administrative burdens is a top priority for Colorado Medical Society. To advance these goals, we have launched Health Can't Wait Colorado to advocate and build a coalition to fight against undue administrative burdens such as prior authorization that delay patient care.

With less than 60 days left, we are more than halfway through the 2023 Legislative Session!
Physician Assistant bill passes Senate with amendments; our work now moves to the House

SB23-083 Physician Assistant Collaboration Requirements has passed the Senate with some of CMS-supported amendments included and has been assigned to the House Public & Behavioral Health & Human Services Committee.

In the original bill, "employers" would have been able to enter into collaborative agreements with PAs. This potentially would have allowed corporations to have oversight of PAs. Added amendments that CMS supports remove employers from the bill and require the collaborative agreement to be between a Colorado physician or a Colorado physician group and a PA. Other amendments clarify definitions and increased training requirements.

Thanks to all who responded to the Code Blue sent to membership last week; those responses helped drive some of the action for the amendments voted on during the Senate floor debate. We will continue to work to fix this bill to help ensure safe, quality care for patients.
Thank you to legislative champions of medicine
Sen. Kyle Mullica, D-Thornton, a staunch champion of medicine, led the charge to stand up for patient safety with other incredible friends in the Senate and the Colorado Medical Society. Sen. Mullica has not wavered in his support of CMS-supported amendments to SB23-083 Physician Assistant Collaboration Requirements. Thank you, Senator!
Any individual 18 and older can contribute. Contribution limits apply. $50/year to the SDC; $625/election cycle to COMPAC. If you think you may have met the contribution limit already, contact chet_seward@cms.org.
CMS advocates for crucial patient safety checks in HB23-1071 Licensed Psychologist Prescriptive Authority

HB23-1071 - Licensed Psychologist Prescriptive Authority allowing psychologists prescriptive authority for psychotropic medications has been sent to the governor following an intense campaign by the Colorado Medical Society and our House of Medicine partners to add important patient safeguards.

A number of important amendments were included in this bill to ensure patient safety. The amendments include the following: physician oversight and collaboration requirements, increased education and practicum hours, specific required practicum hours for pediatrics and geriatrics, practicum supervised by a physician, increased collaboration and oversight from the medical board, and parent/guardian consent required to prescribe.
The CMS Bill Tracker is your tool to stay up to date with health care legislation and CMS's positions on bills!
Upcoming CMS Meetings
All Colorado Medical Society committee meetings and events are open to all CMS members. Find the latest list of events on the CMS events webpage, cms.org/events. Upcoming meetings are listed below. Email membership@cms.org for more information.


Registration is required for most meetings; non-members or those unable to be identified at the time of virtual meetings may be removed. Unsure if you are a CMS member? Email membership@cms.org.
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