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The relationship between a patient and a physician is based on trust, and this relationship gives rise to physicians’ ethical responsibility to place their patients’ welfare above the physician’s own self-interest or obligations to others, to use sound medical judgment on their patient’s behalf, and to advocate for their patient’s welfare. The SDSMA supports physician and patient autonomy in the provision of evidence-based medical services, which includes reproductive health care. The SDSMA maintains that a patient and their physician should work together to make personal health and medical decisions and will oppose attempts to infringe upon the patient-physician relationship.

Accordion SampleTo protect South Dakota patients and ensure that patients receive the highest quality medical care from the people best trained to deliver that care, the SDSMA will oppose any efforts to allow non-physicians to practice medicine beyond the scope of their education and training.

The best way to support high quality care and lower costs is to keep physicians as the leader of the health care team. Allowing non-physicians to diagnose and treat patients without any physician oversight is a mistake. The SDSMA is committed to preserving the team-based, physician-led model of health care that South Dakotans support and deserve. Description

Rural health care is a critical issue and access to high quality and affordable health care is essential in improving public health. Interactive telemedicine services provide real-time, face-to-face interaction between patient and provider, and have been used as an alternative to traditional in-person health care delivery for some time. And in certain circumstances, telemedicine can be used to deliver such care as the diagnosis, consultation, treatment, education, care management and self-management to patients. The SDSMA will advocate for the passage of legislation to ensure payment and payment parity for services provided via telemedicine.

South Dakota is facing a shortage of physicians as more than one in four South Dakota residents live in what has been classified as a “primary care shortage area.” Given the fact that patients prefer a physician for their primary care, the SDSMA strongly supports increased funding for medical student and graduate medical education.

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) in rural South Dakota are in crisis. The SDSMA believes the future of rural EMS cannot be based upon and reliant on volunteers, and that the overall capacity and capabilities of EMS need to be strengthened. We will advocate for increased awareness as to the severity of the rural EMS crisis.

Untreated issues related to poor mental health is one of the primary causes of self-medication and addiction. The SDSMA will advocate for improved access and third-party coverage of psychosocial support and services for those with mental illness.

The SDSMA believes in promoting healthy lifestyles, eliminating health disparities, and improving awareness of public health issues such as the harmful effects of tobacco use and secondhand smoke, e-cigarette use, obesity, drug and alcohol abuse, violence prevention, suicide prevention, and seat belt use.

The SDSMA affirms the vital role of immunizations in protecting South Dakotans and preventing disease outbreaks, and supports funding, education, and state requirements and opposes exemptions and any efforts to weaken current immunization policies.

Decreasing immunization rates, which could negatively impact South Dakota in many ways, make our communities vulnerable to preventable diseases. This trend is exacerbated by misinformation and actions to undermine decades of public health success. The SDSMA is committed to increasing proactive efforts and outreach in recognition that immunizations are important for the health and safety of our entire population.

As work on reforming health care continues, the SDSMA believes the following are important:

• Ensure that Medicaid, CHIP, and other safety net programs are adequately funded.
• Ensure that individuals currently covered do not become uninsured and take steps toward coverage and access for all South Dakotans.
• Maintain key insurance market reforms, such as pre-existing conditions, guaranteed issue, and parental coverage for young adults.
• Support the advancement of delivery reforms and physician-led payment models to achieve better outcomes, higher quality, and lower spending trends.

Patient health and safety is of the utmost importance to the SDSMA, and the association remains concerned that cannabis is a highly addictive drug of which evidence-based scientific research has documented many negative consequences with both short and long-term use.

The SDSMA supports an evidence-based approach to the evaluation of qualifying debilitating medical conditions for patient eligibility for medical cannabis and opposes a certification process resulting in the proliferation of pop-up certification clinics.

Prior authorization is a cost-control process by insurance companies requiring health care providers to qualify for payment by obtaining approval before performing a service. The SDSMA believes that prior authorization is overused and existing processes present significant administrative and clinical concerns.

Physicians want nothing more than to provide the most clinically appropriate care for their patients. Utilization management programs must therefore have a clinically accurate foundation for provider adherence to be feasible and to ensure that patients don’t receive delayed or incomplete health care, thereby resulting in more serious health issues.

The SDSMA opposes cost-containment provisions that do not have proper medical justification and do little more than create administrative burdens that cause dangerous delays in patient care.