Center for Tomorrow's Medicine

The WSMA’s Center for Tomorrow’s Medicine is your source for information on the health care and medical practice environment, and the WSMA’s legislative and public advocacy work.

In this area of our website you can find information about what the WSMA is doing to make Washington a better place to practice medicine and receive care. Learn about how the WSMA advocates on behalf of you and your patients, and about health issues and reform efforts in our state and congress.

Center Director: Tom Curry

Tom Curry is the Executive Director/CEO of the WSMA, and primary staff director of the Center for Tomorrow’s Medicine. Tom can be reached at tjc@wsma.org.

What's New

Let the Public Discussions Begin

The health care reform working group bill recently signed by the governor creates a 13-member group to engage the public in discussing five health care reform options. The group will include four legislators (one from each caucus) and nine citizens, to be appointed by the governor. The proposals to be laid out for public discussion include an essentially market based approach and four approaches with greater government involvement (including a single payer model). The working group is to hold public discussions about these options around the state in 2009 with a report to the 2010 legislature.

The Healthy Washington Coalition (the WSMA is a member) is putting together a program to get in on the public discussion process this summer, in advance of the working group program. The coalition plans seven public sessions – in Eastern Washington, Vancouver, Tacoma, King County and Everett. The WSMA is planning to support the coalition in this effort, in line with 2007 House of Delegates directives. Other coalition members include AARP, the WSHA, and numerous unions.

The following are dates and locations of The Washington Health Care Caucuses: Speaking Up for Quality, Affordable Health Care:

All these meetings will be from 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm.

June 19, University Christian Church, 4731 15th Avenue NE, Seattle, 98105
July 1, Temple Beth El, 5975 S. 12th St., Tacoma, 98465
July 15, Holy Family Catholic Church, 5315 Tieton Dr., Yakima, 98908 (in school next door to church)
July 29, First Presbyterian Church, 318 S. Cedar St., Spokane, 99201 (still awaiting final confirmation of availability of site)
August 12, Temple Bnai Torah, 15727 NE 4th St., Bellevue, 98001
September 9, Everett Station, Weyerhauser Room, 3201 Smith Avenue, Everett, 98201
September 23, Clark PUD Community Room, 1200 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver

Question for these meetings are being drafted. Organizations that are part of the coalition are being asked to turn out attendees. The WSMA encourages its members to attend and make sure participants understand how medical practices now deal with the current “system,” and physicians’ views on practical steps to a better medical practice – and care delivery – environment.

Washington Policy Center Health Care Conference on May 13

The Washington Policy Center (WPC), through its Health Care Center (of which the WSMA is a member), will host its annual Health Care Conference on May 13 (7:30 am to 4:00 pm, at the Doubletree SeaTac). Supporters of the WPC and this conference, in addition to the WSMA, include health plans, major employers, the Association of Washington Business, and the Puget Sound Health Alliance. Other such programs, from other organizations, appear likely. The conference is one of the better-attended health care events. Nearly 300 participated in the 2007 meeting. This year’s line-up:

Keynote Speaker: Grace-Marie Turner of the Galen Institute. She is a member of the National Advisory Council of Healthcare Research and Quality and recently served as a member of the President’s Medicaid Commission, charged with making recommendations to modernize and improve Medicaid.

Other topics – a 2009 legislative preview, a discussion of the Health Insurance Partnership Proposal/Connector type program in other states, Health IT, and innovations in health care.

More information about the conference is available here.