AHA looks to collaborate with docs

The American Hospital Association, which lobbied to stop physicians from owning hospitals, has created a new organization to represent doctors who now are owned by hospitals. 

The AHA kicked off its Physician Leadership Forum at a breakfast meeting in San Diego today at the AHA's Leadership Summit. The organization will represent the interests of physicians who are working closely with hospitals on new models of care delivery. Specifically, the new organization will focus its energy on four objectives: education and leadership; physician advocacy and policy development; quality and patient safety; and partnerships with other healthcare organizations.

Information about the new group is available at www.ahaphysicianforum.org.

"The AHA's initiative is particularly timely," said Dr. William Jessee, president and CEO of the Medical Group Management Association. "We see more and more of our members becoming members of hospitals and integrated delivery systems. The forum will help meet the needs of physicians in AHA member organizations."

The MGMA is a partner organization of the new Physician Leadership Forum, and Jessee spoke at the kick-off breakfast.

Other external partners of the new group include the American Board of Medical Specialties, the Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education, the American Medical Association, the Joint Commission and the Society for Hospital Medicine.

A 20-member advisory board will oversee the new group chaired by Dr. Mike Rock, the chief medical officer, at the Mayo Clinic. Other notable members of the all-physician advisory board include Dr. Jonathan Perlin, president of the clinical and physician services group at HCA, and Dr. Glenn Steele Jr., president and CEO of Geisinger Health System.

Dr. John Combes, AHA senior vice president, said the intent of the new organization is not to compete with the AMA or organized medicine. Combes also spoke at today's breakfast.

"We are not representing physicians' interests to Congress," Combes told Modern Healthcare. Rather, the new group "provides an avenue for physicians to affect AHA policy."

The AHA along with the Federation of American Hospitals successfully lobbied to have severe restrictions on physician-owned hospitals added to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.