The San Bernardino County Medical Society board approved the audit report presented by CPA Matt Wilson, of Rogers Anderson Malody & Scott, for the year ending June 30, 2005. Total assets on June 30, 2005, were $1,499,031, up from $1,399,596 in 2004. Current liabilities on June 30, 2005, were $191,129, compared with $205,202 on June 30, 2004.

Inland Empire Health Plan Chief Medical Officer Brad Gilbert, MD, reported total membership is 297,843. Medi-Cal enrollment is 250,661, with 35,576 enrolled in the Healthy Families program. Healthy Kids enrollment for San Bernardino County is 3,080. In-Home Supportive Services enrollment is 1,482. The August auto assignment was 39 percent.

California Medical Association Trustee Dev GnanaDev, MD, reported that the CMA’s new legislative team performed incredibly well this year, killing every opposed bill it set out to eliminate, with the exception of one acupuncture bill. In addition, the CMA was able to get a bill introduced in the final week of the legislative session to prevent a new 5 percent cut in Medi-Cal physician reimbursement. Looking back, the CMA came through the session with a state budget without physician cuts; without forcing aged, blind and disabled Medicare patients out of longstanding patient-physician relationships into managed care; and without mandatory CME bills. Dr. GnanaDev added that CMA also made monumental progress in reshaping the Medical Board of California reauthorization bill (SB 231), which is on the governor’s desk.

Working on the national level, CMA representatives met with key legislators and congressional representatives to discuss the Medicare SGR and GPCI dilemmas, Dr. GnanaDev said. The CMA continues to pursue federal legislation that requires the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to move any county in the country whose Medicare geographic adjustment factor exceeds its Medicare geographic payment locality by 5 percent to a new locality, with additional funding to pay for the change.

However, the cost of previously approved tax cuts, the war in Iraq, and Hurricane Katrina and Rita relief will make any new funding controversial, Dr. GnanaDev said. Still, the CMA believes the legislation by Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-Conn.) is worthy of bipartisan support, since it replaces the SGR with the Medicare Economic Index. The MEI minimum projected annual increase of 2.7 percent to 3 percent is currently the government update formula that applies to hospitals, home health and long-term care.

Dr. GnanaDev reminded the board of the Nov. 17 deadline to submit claim forms for the $135 million WellPoint (Blue Cross of California) settlement. Claim forms are available at SBCMS or can be obtained at the CMA RICO Resource Center at www.cmanet.org.

In other business, the board approved the two-month financial report for the period July 1, 2005, to Aug. 31, 2005, as presented by SBCMS Treasurer Rodney Borger, MD. Total revenue was $82,905. Total expenses were $69,081. Excess revenue over expenses was $13,824 after depreciation. It was noted the 2005-06 budget allocated $14,000 in expenses for the 2006 CMA House of Delegates. However, the CMA moved the HOD from March to October 2006, thus there will be no HOD expenses in this year’s budget.

Recruitment efforts from June to September have resulted in 20 new members. Executive Director Linda Stratton reported a recruitment effort was scheduled on Oct. 18 at Chino Valley Medical Center where CMA CEO Jack Lewin, MD, will speak.

The San Bernardino County Medical Reserve Corps received third-year funding of $50,000, for the period Sept. 30, 2005, to Sept. 29, 2006.

The board approved the $16,214 proposal from Technology Services Co. to upgrade the SBCMS iMIS database software from the 4.2 version to the 10.5 version. Half of California’s county medical societies use iMIS software. Two thirds of those societies use Technology Services Co.

The board will nominate Ronald Bangasser, MD, for the Medical Board of California’s Physician Recognition Program Award, which recognizes individual physicians or groups of physicians who strive to improve access and to fill gaps in the healthcare delivery system for underserved populations in California. SBCMS also nominated Albert Arteaga, MD, for the CMA Ethnic Physician Leadership Award.

SBCMS President Dennis Flynn, MD, appointed Damodara Rajasekhar, MD, to represent SBCMS on a task force to assess and discuss healthcare issues in the High Desert. Bill Postmus, chairman of the Board of Supervisors, called the meeting because of dramatic growth in the High Desert and the impact of growth on healthcare delivery. The task force will meet Oct. 12.