Early voting makes it easy to cast your ballot when it’s most convenient for you. Vote at any early voting location in your county. Head to the polls October 19-30.     Go to hubs.li/Q04ByW-K0 to check your registration status and find a polling place.

Put the brakes on flu season with a flu shot. Talk to your physician to learn more.  #VaccinesDefendWhatMatters  hubs.li/Q04nYd0f0

Comptroller Moves to End Texas’ Medical Records Sales Tax After Meeting with TMA. Texas Comptroller Don Huffines’ decision to eliminate sales tax on charges to maintain, access, or share electronic medical records is just one victory TMA has won for its members. Physicians’ stories were vital to the decision that may save practices significant cost. hubs.li/Q04B4xBm0

Payment for Some Third-Party Remote Patient Monitoring at Risk in Proposed Medicare Fee Schedule. Many physician practices use contracted vendors to supply remotely connected medical devices and help their patients. TMA warns the proposed change to restrict that could have unintended consequences – just as Medicare debuts a new chronic-care initiative built on similar technology. hubs.li/Q04zXKbC0

New CPT Codes Address Maternity Care, AI – But Payment Questions Remain. The new code set, which takes effect Jan. 1, 2027, adds 10 new artificial intelligence (AI)-related codes and includes significant changes to maternity care coding. Payers must still decide whether and when to incorporate the changes. hubs.li/Q04zxBXx0

TMA Win: Texas Comptroller Seeks to End Medical Records Tax TMA has learned Texas Comptroller Don Huffines signed an executive order that seeks to abolish the tax on medical records and on the systems physicians use to maintain them – a longstanding advocacy goal for the association. TMA is analyzing the positive impact of the change, which followed a roundtable meeting with physicians and business representatives. Read Texas Medicine Today for more coverage. Read the executive order. (hubs.li/Q04znnFy0) #TMA #TexasMedicine #TMAWins

FBI Warns of Recent Medical License Scams. TMA cautions all members to be vigilant as scammers are falsely threatening to revoke a medical practitioner’s license. Here are some basic tips to keep your information safe. hubs.li/Q04zdJWc0

Get your flu shots. Talk to your physician to learn more.  #VaccinesDefendWhatMatters  hubs.li/Q04nXN4y0

State Nutrition Advisory Committee Serves Up Guidelines to Shape CME, Med School Curriculum. Nobody likes being told to eat their vegetables – so the state’s new committee is instead urging Texans to “eat real food, y’all.” The state CME requirement for physicians goes into effect Jan. 1, 2027, with a medical school curriculum requirement to follow in July. hubs.li/Q04yG8nG0

Mandatory Ambulatory Specialty Model Moves Ahead Despite Medicine’s Concerns. The new Medicare value-based care program will affect nearly 1,000 Texas physicians caring for patients with low back pain or heart failure across seven specialties. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will offer more information and field questions in a Sept. 30 online office hour. hubs.li/Q04ywjHX0

Patients’ AI Use Presents an Opportunity for Physician-Led Conversation. As patients increasingly turn to artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots that lack evidence-based interventions, ethical oversight, and human judgment for mental health support, physicians say medicine must help guide the technology’s evolution to ensure it supports – not supplants – evidence-based care. hubs.li/Q04ymzkm0

Pregnant Women in Texas Need Access to Critical Health Services, TMA Tells Lawmakers. On Sept. 15, the House Public Health Subcommittee on Maternal Health, Menopause, and Access to Evidence-Based Medicine examined how to improve women’s health care in Texas. TMA Council on Legislation member Deborah Fuller, MD, gave insights and solutions critical to that goal. hubs.li/Q04ymBLb0

Defend yourself and those you love by staying on top of your vaccinations. It’s a simple step that makes a big difference at every age and every stage. #VaccinesDefendWhatMatters  hubs.li/Q04xv8S60

Electronic Prior Auth Standards Roll Out for Medicare Advantage, More. Under a final rule, revised timelines, technological upgrades, and payer reporting requirements are being implemented for programs like Medicare Advantage and Medicaid. Some provisions are already in effect. hubs.li/Q04y9wLX0

TMA Critiques ‘Appalling’ Cuts in 2027 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Proposal. Reduced physician payments, a major cut to modifier 25 services, and a mandatory pilot program launching in 2027 feature in a nine-point critique. TMA has been active in writing and on social media to push needed fixes. hubs.li/Q04y9vPZ0

TMA Backs Funding Request for State Health Agency. The Texas Department of State Health Services is seeking more than $230 million for the 2028-29 biennium. While some is planned to maintain operations, other requests would protect Texans’ health directly. hubs.li/Q04y4X-s0

Prediction Markets, Gaming Need Guardrails for Minors, TMA Tells Legislature. Approximately 85% of U.S. teens play video games, many of which now include enticing ways to spend money. At the same time, prediction markets are making it easier to expose youth to early forms of gambling. Physicians are pressing Texas lawmakers to raise the guardrails. hubs.li/Q04xVFP90

TMB Asks Lawmakers for More Spending Authority. TMA President Bradford W. Holland, MD, pointed out to state budget leaders that the Texas Medical Board (TMB) has overseen a continued pattern of historic growth in medical licenses. Together, TMB and TMA strengthen the state’s medical landscape. hubs.li/Q04xBRws0

Texas communities still need strong public health — even when federal priorities shift.  Austin internist and pediatrician Maria Monge, MD, testified for TMA, the Texas Pediatric Society, and the Texas Public Health Coalition in support of full Department of State Health Services (DSHS) funding for 2026–27, plus extra dollars to cover gaps in core health services. “While federal priorities may change, DSHS and local health departments know the needs of our Texas communities,” Dr. Monge said.

TMA Offers Health Care Affordability Recommendations to State Legislators. Health care affordability is shaping up to be a primary concern for Texas lawmakers heading into the 2027 legislative session. TMA presented concrete measures that would benefit patients without merely shifting costs within the system. hubs.li/Q04xh4bH0