Radiologists and other physicians are putting on a full-court press, hoping to create greater protections for their peers during the COVID-19 pandemic response.
This includes a recently launched Change.org petition directed at President Donald Trump and other elected leaders, imploring them to help doctors on the front lines. They’re asking for, among other things, greater access to personal protective equipment, removing restrictions on telehealth, and taking steps to keep practices “financially solvent.”
To remedy these concerns, they’re asking lawmakers to consider enacting the “COVID-19 Pandemic Physician Protection Act,” and have gathered more than 90,000 signatures to back their request.
“Please take a moment to sign our petition, which will also supports our proposed legislation (the CPPPA). We truly believe it will save lives—not only of physicians, but of patients throughout the United States of America,” wrote radiologist Nisha Mehta, MD, a breast imaging specialist with Veterans Affairs, alongside fellow MDs Carlos Vital and Karla Vital.
In an interview with STAT News released Monday, Mehta expressed frustration after seeing multiple special interest groups get a piece of the stimulus bill piece. However, she felt there was inadequate measures to help practice leaders.
“I think people forget that physicians are also business owners and have their own private practices that need to stay solvent,” she told the news site.
Other provisions in the bill would include ensuring mental health coverage for physicians, canceling student loan debt, and establishing protections for docs and their families. The latter, she said, would be similar to how first responders were assisted after 9/11.
Mehta—also a member of Radiology Business Journal’s advisory board—said text of the bill has not yet been released publicly. However, she and colleagues have sent it to several members of Congress, “who seem to be receptive to putting some version of this out,” she told STAT.
The North Carolina radiologist also made headlines last week after sharing “widespread reports” of hospitals preventing providers from speaking with the media. The Council of Medical Societies—representing more than 80,000 physicians across 45 specialties—also spoke out on this issue April 2. The group said it’s standing alongside the American Medical Association in advocating that “no employer should restrict physicians’ freedom to advocate for the best interest of their patients.”
“Physicians and other healthcare professionals should not be at risk of having their employment terminated, or be otherwise disciplined, for speaking out, within their health care systems or publicly, on conditions and practices related to care of COVID-19 patients,” the CMSS said in a statement co-signed by the American College of Radiology and Society of Interventional Radiology.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.