New Mississippi State Medical Association President discusses advocacy plans for upcoming year

JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) -The Mississippi State Medical Association represents over 5,000 doctors, medical students, and residents across the state.

There’s a new leader who says she’s ready to advocate for the issues that affect doctors and ultimately, the patients.

While Dr. Jennifer Bryan may be the new lead of the MSMA, much of what they’ll push in the upcoming session will be a continuation of previous advocacy work.

“We’re going to continue the Medicaid expansion conversation this year,” said Bryan. “Just across our state, we’ve got so many people who are working hard to pay the bills, to put food on the table and then also to access health care. Many of these people are working hard and have dual incomes and can’t afford the astronomical cost of health insurance.”

There’s also the issue of scope of practice. It’s something Bryan says the association is prepared to discuss with lawmakers.

“We’ve seen loopholes where, you know, some people are not getting the adequate training,” she explained. “Some people are. So, it’s difficult for the public to ascertain, you know, who has been appropriately trained and who has not. But nonetheless, the hours, there’s thousands and thousands of hours of difference in the training.”

You may or may not pay attention to whether you’re getting seen by a doctor or nurse practitioner at your local clinic.

Right now, nurse practitioners still have to have an agreement with a physician to practice. However, it can be an electronic supervision of charts.

There’s been a push for more than a decade to completely do away with the collaboration requirement.

“It’s really not a turf war. It’s a quality, and it’s a cost conversation,” noted Bryan. “Do we have the patient safety and best interest at heart, or is this just what we want to do because we think it’s the next step to do?”

It’s a debate that’s likely to play out at the Capitol in a few months.

Dangerous substances like kratom and getting them off the market will also be on the radar for the association as the legislative session approaches.

MSMA also has a new president-elect. Psychiatrist Dr. Katherine Pannel, D.O., is the first Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) to hold the position in the association’s history.

Dr. Pannel plans to continue her advocacy for mental health, physician autonomy, and patient care in the new role.

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