A national physicians group is voicing its support and seeking public support for a Health Insurer Code of Conduct being drafted by the American Medical Association.

David Charles

Baltimore, Md.-based Alliance for Patient Access has launched an online petition calling for the adoption of the code to address what it calls “restrictive practices of the managed care industry which undermine the integrity of doctor-patient relationships.”

The AMA is set to vote to adopt the code this June. In November 2008, the AMA House of Delegates passed a resolution to draft the code with the goal of setting clear and concise principles addressing both medical policies and payment issues, as well as developing a method to monitor compliance by managed care companies.

The alliance is a national network of more than 250 physicians who share the mission of ensuring and protecting patient access to approved medical treatments and therapies, according to its website.

Dr. David Charles, chairman of the Alliance for Patient Access, called the code “long overdue.”

“Signing the petition is an excellent way for physicians and the public to urge the AMA to adopt a National Heath Insurer Code of Conduct,” he said in a statement. “Anyone who cares about preserving the inviolability of the patient-doctor relationship should sign the petition in order to urge the AMA toward action on this important issue.”

The alliance said that while many managed care organizations maintain “appropriate focus on quality measures,” some managed care plans and pharmacy benefit managers “employ aggressive tactics to cut costs, while at the same time shifting blame for consequences of actions such as premium increases and cost-sharing strategies onto other parties in the healthcare industry.”

Dr. Linda Whitby, an obstetrician and gynecologist in Edgewater, Md., said in her state, “cost-control efforts implemented by managed care health plans have created the widespread perception that such plans are more interested in saving money than providing quality health care.”

“The Alliance for Patient Access is taking the lead to collect support for a Code of Conduct to empower health plans to voluntarily agree to abide by principled guidelines and specific protocols regarding certain issues that are particularly prone to abuse,” Whitby said in a statement. “I applaud them for spearheading this initiative.”

The Alliance petition, available for viewing at www.insurepatientaccess.org, calls for autonomy between doctors and managed care companies, and transparency regarding a patient’s prescribed course of care, according to the group.