1. Health of the Public

IAFP is opposed to legislation that would erode physicians’ ability to practice within their full scope and that puts Iowa patients in harm’s way.  Specifically, the IAFP is committed to monitoring the scope of practice protection, supporting vaccination as a tool for healthy communities, and promote policies that protect and preserve patient-physician relationships. 

2. Workforce initiatives. 

The Academy will continue to explore ways to increase quality physician access to patients in Iowa through workforce programs like the Primary Care Rural Loan Repayment Program drafted by the IAFP in 2014. Fully funding these programs is critical to maintain a physician centered primary care workforce in Iowa. As such, IAFP supports:

• Increased funding for the Rural Primary Care Loan Repayment Program,
• Increased state funding for the Medical Residency Programs
  
  

3. Maternal Care and Insurance Coverage

• In the current ACA marketplace, qualifying life events triggering a special enrollment period include the birth of a child but do not include pregnancy. Health and Human Services has declined previous requests to establish pregnancy as a qualifying life event triggering a Special Enrollment Period.  

• This causes a gap in insurance coverage for pregnant women because they earn too much to qualify for Medicaid, are not enrolled or eligible for employer-sponsored plans, and become pregnant outside of the ACA Marketplace Insurance enrollment period.  

• Women who do not receive prenatal care are three to four times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications, and their infants are three times more likely to have a low birth rate and five times more likely to die in infancy. 
• IAFP endorses and publicly advocates the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Congress for establishing pregnancy as a triggering life event for a Special Enrollment Period in the Affordable Care Act Marketplace. 
  
  

4. Reform Prior Authorization

• Prior authorization continues to be a leading cause of physician burden. Time-consuming administrative processes encumber family physicians, divert valuable resources from direct patient care, and delay the start or continuation of necessary treatment. This leads to lower rates of patient adherence to treatment and negative clinical outcomes. 

• IAFP supports the improvement of coverage criteria, increasing transparency of prior authorization and medical necessity determinations, and preventing inappropriate coverage denials by organizations. 

• The IAFP will support reform prior authorization, enabling physicians and patients to have access to clear guidelines for prior authorization requirements and timely responses from insurance plans. 
  
  

5. Increased Medicaid Reimbursement Rates

• IAFP supports increased Medicaid reimbursement rates for primary care services and for physicians in rural communities. Increased reimbursement allows for better patient access, improved outcomes, and healthier communities. 

• IAFP also supports increased Medicaid reimbursement rates and coverage for dental care services. Inadequate dental coverage and reimbursement reduces the ability of patients to access routine dental care. This leads to chronic medical conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease and delayed diagnosis of serious dental issues, which can compound and create larger medical issues. 

We are pleased to bring you updates of the Iowa Legislature and report on issues that are important to family physicians put together by IAFP lobbyists, David Adelman and Sara Allen.

 

Session updates coming soon!