Texas was represented well by TAFP members at AAFP’s National Conference of Constituency Leaders last month. Several Texans served as leaders and were elected as future leaders.

Co-conveners Kenneth Barning, MD, and Joaquin Villegas, MD, planned and assisted in running the constituency caucuses throughout the meeting. They will also serve as member constituency delegates at AAFP’s Congress of Delegates meeting in October.

Additionally, Astrud Villareal, MD, was elected as the women’s constituency co-convener and Camella DeSerto, MD, was elected as the LGBTQ+ constituency co-convener. They will both serve as alternate delegates to AAFP’s Congress of Delegates.

“We had a great group of Texas family physicians at NCCL again this year,” said TAFP Chief Operating Officer Kathy McCarthy. “It was great to see their passion for the specialty and their support of each other in seeking leadership positions and crafting and introducing resolutions.”

Thank you to all of the Texas family physicians who attended this year. Check out TAFP’s Instagram for more photos from the conference.

“We chose to offer osteopathic CME credit to better support our DO members in meeting AOA requirements and accessing relevant educational opportunities,” she says. “This ensures our programming remains inclusive, meets the needs of osteopathic physicians, and continues to provide strong value to their membership with TAFP.”

Lisa Nash, DO, is the dean of the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine UNT Health Fort Worth. She says she sees firsthand how important it is for DOs to be recognized and supported within our professional organizations.

“Offering AOA credit sends a clear message that TAFP values osteopathic training and is committed to meeting the needs of its DO members. That kind of intentional inclusion matters, and it strengthens engagement, professional development, and long-term connection to the Academy.”

With three osteopathic medical schools in Texas, the percentage of TAFP members who are osteopaths continues to increase. Currently, 15% of active members and 33% of resident members trained at osteopathic medical schools. Members who are board certified by the AOA are required to earn 30 AOA Category 1-A credits every three years.

Dwane Broussard, MD, of Houston was elected by the TMA House of Delegates as an alternate delegate to the American Medical Association. Broussard will represent TMA, serving as a key liaison for other physicians looking to participate in national advocacy, policy, and programs.

Greg Fuller, MD, of Keller retained his position on the TMA board and will now serve a second three-year term as secretary/treasurer. Rodney Young, MD, of Amarillo will also continue serving on the board this year as an at-large member.

TAFP hosted a Primary Care Update for the second year in a row, which was open to all conference attendees and provided free CME. A crowd of more than 50 physicians attended, including family docs and other specialties. Topics presented included liver disease, dermatitis, and cardiomyopathy.

“Now in our second year offering clinical CME at TexMed, TAFP is proud to strengthen the family medicine presence through primary care-focused education,” said TAFP Director of Education Jessica Miley. “We aim to deliver practical, evidence-based learning that physicians can use right away to improve patient care.”

With a strong showing of family physicians at TexMed and in TMA leadership the specialty continues to be well represented in the wider organized medicine community. Similarly, TAFP’s strong presence at TexMed and newer initiatives like the Primary Care Update show that the Academy continues to champion family medicine and help members evolve with the needs of patients and communities.

Why it matters: 

Family medicine relies heavily on international medical graduates to meet patient care needs, but ongoing delays in visa processing are worsening workforce shortages and disrupting care continuity. Backlogs and uncertainty around J-1 waivers, H-1B extensions and green card applications are forcing some physicians to delay residency start dates, cut back hours or leave their communities altogether.

What we’re working on: 

• AAFP led a coalition letter to the Departments of Homeland Security and State urging expedited processing of visas and immigration benefits for IMGs who are essential to the U.S. physician workforce, particularly in underserved and rural communities.
• We have also endorsed the H-1Bs for the Physicians and Healthcare Workforce Act, legislation that would exempt physicians from the new H-1B $100,000 fee. 
• AAFP is calling on the departments to use existing tools — such as premium processing and expedited review — to fast-track applications for already credentialed physicians ready to practice. 
• AAFP is also continuing to work with federal partners to improve coordination across agencies and reduce immigration-related barriers to care, while longer-term workforce solutions are developed.

Family physicians weigh in on AHEAD proposed rule

Why it matters: 

A proposed rule for the new Workforce Pell program would open eligibility to individuals with bachelor’s degrees but exclude anyone who has already earned a graduate credential. Restricting eligibility in this way could unintentionally shut out learners who are trying to reskill or change careers, particularly those from underrepresented or low-income backgrounds who often follow non-linear education paths. 

Limiting federal aid based solely on credentials, rather than financial need or workforce demand, risks reinforcing existing inequities instead of addressing workforce gaps.

What we’re working on:

• In a letter to the U.S. Department of Education, AAFP urged a broader approach, recommending that access to Workforce Pell be based on need and workforce goals rather than prior degree status.
• We called for more inclusive eligibility criteria that allow all qualified individuals, including physicians, to access Workforce Pell funding. 
• AAFP urged the Department of Education to ensure this program supports a diverse, adaptable workforce and expands opportunities for those seeking to enter or remain in high-need fields like primary care.

AAFP voices support for chronic care management legislation

Why it matters: 

Chronic care management, such as care coordination, electronic care planning and managing transitions between clinicians, have been shown to improve patient outcomes, boost satisfaction and reduce hospitalizations and emergency visits. Despite these benefits, only about 4% of eligible Medicare beneficiaries currently use CCM, largely due to cost-sharing barriers and confusion about billing. Removing coinsurance could open access to millions more patients while also lowering overall Medicare spending.

What we’re working on: 

• AAFP supports the Chronic Care Management Improvement Act of 2026, which would expand access to coordinated care for Medicare patients with chronic conditions. The bill would eliminate the current 20% coinsurance requirement for Chronic Care Management services — an out-of-pocket cost that has limited uptake of these high-value services.
• AAFP joined 39 other health care stakeholders in supporting this important legislation. Improving chronic conditions starts with ensuring patients can afford care from their family physician.

AAFP supports event for LEAD model

AAFP participated in an in person convening focused on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ new Long Term Enhanced ACO Design (LEAD) Model, joining physician groups, accountable care leaders and federal officials to discuss the future of value-based care. The meeting coincided with the model’s rollout and included engagement from CMS leadership, highlighting continued federal focus on strengthening accountable care.

AAFP is actively collaborating with partners and federal officials to help shape LEAD implementation, with a focus on supporting primary care–led models, reducing administrative burden and ensuring long-term stability for participating practices.

NASEM meeting spotlights primary care 

Dr. Yalda Jabbarpour, Director of the Robert Graham Center presented at the National Academies of Science workshop, “Exploring Opportunities to Improve Patient Access to Care through Strategic Changes to Graduate Medical Education.” She discussed the importance of comprehensive data, especially as it relates to measuring the successful retention and recruitment of primary care physicians in communities of greatest need. At the conference she discussed RGC’s development of the Graduate Medical Education Impact Quotient (GME-IQ) data tool, which measures primary care output with a focus on practicing in high needs areas.

AAFP CEO testifies before Congress on U.S. health care affordability

AAFP EVP and CEO Shawn Martin testified last month before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health. For decades, the U.S. has woefully underinvested in primary care, and patients are paying the price. In his testimony, Martin outlined six steps policymakers can take to start to correct the affordability crisis in health care.

1. Double the nation’s financial investment in primary care and the primary care workforce.
2. Reform Medicare payment to better value the actual care physicians deliver to patients, rather than overvaluing health care facilities.
3. Establish a regulatory framework that supports independent physician-led payment models like direct primary care.
4. Create space to allow physicians to focus on patients by reducing administrative complexity.
5. Remove financial barriers to accessing primary care.
6. Promote proven, evidence-based interventions like vaccines.

Regulatory roundup

AAFP has been active in the regulatory space, weighing in on proposed rules that would impact physicians, patients and practices. Here are a few highlights.

CRUSH RFI

AAFP submitted comments on CMS’ proposed CRUSH RFI aimed at reducing fraud, waste and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid.

• While the AAFP supports efforts to strengthen the Medicare and Medicaid programs, we cautioned that many current and proposed administrative requirements, such as documentation, audits and prior authorization, place heavy burdens on family physicians without effectively targeting fraud.
• AAFP warned these demands contribute to clinician burnout and may accelerate physician practice consolidation.

AAFP urges changes to 340B rebate pilot

AAFP submitted comments to HRSA opposing a proposed 340B pilot that would deviate from current practice and require community health centers to pay full price for some drugs upfront and wait for rebates. We warned this could strain limited resources and delay access to affordable medications and urged HRSA to exempt these centers.

AAFP weighs in on FDA e-cigarette guidance

AAFP raised concerns about youth harm from e-cigarettes while cautiously supporting the FDA’s draft guidance to be more strident on flavored products. We called for strict, risk-based standards across all electronic nicotine delivery systems, emphasizing that youth-appealing flavors should only be approved with strong evidence of helping adults quit smoking and urging continued enforcement against illegal products. 

What we're reading

The voice of a physician has always carried weight, especially when it comes to advocacy for public policies. In a new essay for Johns Hopkins University, AAFP President Sarah C. Nosal, MD, dispels misconceptions about physician-led advocacy.

MedPage Today highlighted the AAFP-led coalition letter urging expedited processing of visas and immigration benefits for IMGs. “We urge the departments [of State and Homeland Security] to act swiftly to implement targeted, lawful relief that recognizes the national interest in ensuring that qualified physicians can enter, remain and continue serving patients in the U.S. without unnecessary delay,” AAFP said.

Shawn Martin’s congressional testimony on health care affordability was quoted in Becker’s Hospital Review.

For the latest policy updates impacting family medicine, follow us at @aafp_advocacy.

The road to family medicine wasn’t necessarily a straight line for Ben Galichia, MD, which is exactly what makes his journey so compelling. Originally a Spanish major, he spent a few years working as a patient care tech and anesthesia tech while preparing for medical school before earning his spot at UT Southwestern. From there, he completed a family medicine residency at JPS in Fort Worth, where he also did a surgical family medicine and obstetrics fellowship, building a strong foundation in full-spectrum care. After training, his journey took him far beyond Texas, including time traveling abroad, serving at a mission hospital in Tanzania, and working rural ER shifts west of Fort Worth. Now, he’s stepped into his first full-time attending role at Texoma Medical Center, where he’s helping launch an FMOB service within the residency program, bringing together his passion for obstetrics, global health, and serving communities with limited access to care.

Who or what inspired you to become a family physician?
I think growing up in my family's antique shop is probably what most inspired me to become a family doc. We've had people of all shapes, sizes, ages, and types come through our doors over the 30+ years I've spent in the shop. Watching my parents listen to, learn from, and interact gracefully with them and navigate all sorts of conversation types and lifestyles really suited me to be a full-spectrum family medicine doctor. Both are definitely all about developing relationships with people, and in my work, I just add in the medical knowledge part. In both though, you have to be ready for whatever walks through the door. Shameless plug — Country Garden Antiques in Dallas — check them out!

Tell us about your experiences with global health and how that became a passion of yours.
Ah yes, my global health obsession... I think it honestly mostly stems from growing up quite poor in a violent part of Oak Cliff, in Dallas. I grew up seeing a lot of unpolished in-your-face things, and it inspired me to try to do something greater with the one life I've been given. Part of that became traveling and getting out there in the world, which made me realize there are levels of need that I didn't imagine existed!

One of my favorite stories is from last year in Tanzania, when the local physician, Dr. Moses, and myself had just finished rounding on the pediatric unit at Bwambo Hospital. A mother brought her four-year-old child up for discharge. He was crying because he had never seen a white person before and was scared of me. When we pulled out his IV, he wiped his tears and blurted out, "Asante babu albino," which means, "Thank you, albino grandfather." Haha!

Global health moments like these can really humble anyone, remind us to not take ourselves too seriously, and remind us of our common humanity in ways that are much more basic than what we experience in the U.S.

In your current position, you are working to expand the OB training at Texoma - why do you think it's significant that family docs have extended OB training?
Obstetrics-capable family doctors are filling crucial gaps throughout Texas. In a state that is hemorrhaging OBs, many communities, especially more rural ones, are left with no maternal care options.

What we are seeing here in the Sherman-Denison area is an incredible number of women who cannot get an OB appointment for multiple months out and are resorting to either having zero prenatal care and hoping for the best or having occasional ER visits as their only interaction with the health care system prior to going into labor. What we hope to do is in the short term to help fill those gaps, and in the long term to train up more family doctors to continue to change that need. Being able to provide both vaginal and cesarean deliveries as a family doctor — and then to be able to care for the newborn and follow the child as they grow up — is an incredibly fulfilling privilege, and I hope that more family doctors get to experience what a rush that is. As family doctors we are often in unique positions to reach some of society's most vulnerable people, and my training by my amazing teachers at JPS has taught me that providing excellent obstetrical care is a way that family doctors can change lives and stick up for their communities.

Why do you choose to be a TAFP member?
I choose to be a TAFP member to constantly be plugged in to ways I can make my career and my calling about something bigger. It is an easy way to learn about what cool things are going on in the family medicine community, and what needs and opportunities are going unmet. Being part of TAFP also allows me to hold myself to a high academic and evidence-based standard.

What do you enjoy doing outside of medicine?
Outside of medicine I love doing black and white analog/film photography and developing my own prints in the darkroom. I also love traveling to off-the-beaten-path places around the world, experiencing and learning from other cultures, and being an active member of my church.

TAFP’s Member of the Month program highlights Texas family physicians in TAFP News Now and on the TAFP website. We feature a biography and a Q&A with a different TAFP member each month and his or her unique approach to family medicine. If you know an outstanding family physician colleague who you think should be featured as a Member of the Month or if you’d like to tell your own story, nominate yourself or your colleague by contacting TAFP by email at tafp@tafp.org or by phone at (512) 329-8666. 

TAFP’s leadership programs

A new class of the Family Medicine Leadership Experience began their program on Thursday. Across two days, the 2026 class of family physicians from across Texas learned about personality types, leading effective teams, negotiating, and more. These 10 physicians will graduate from the program after two more in-person sessions later this year, joining the approximately 150 FMLE alumni as family physicians ready for leadership roles. Interested in FMLE? The application process for the next class will launch in the fall of 2027. 

Additionally, the current class of the Resident Leadership Experience graduated on Saturday after a year of dedication and mentorship. The program is similar to FMLE, with curriculum focused on interpersonal skills, advocacy, communications and media training, and more. This year’s class of 20 family medicine residents have met monthly over the past year, both in person and virtually. Thank you to this year’s mentors for providing such valuable assistance to participants – Fozia Ali, MD; Jonnae Atkinson, MD; Kathy Nguyen, MD; Laura Nietfeld, MD; and Mary Shipman, DO. Interested in RLE? You can apply now at tafp.org/academy/rle. Applications are due June 1.

Official TAFP business

TAFP’s councils and committees met Friday and Saturday to conduct official Academy business. The Member Assembly with Council Forums featured recent work of each of the three councils as well as a TAFP update from President Ike Okwuwa, MD, MBA. Attendees then heard a presentation on the Child Psychiatry Access Network and the Perinatal Psychiatry Access Network from Nithya, Mani, MD, from the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Dell Medical School. And lastly, TAFP member Tina Philip, DO, gave a presentation on downcoding. For more on downcoding, check out Philip’s recent AAFP blog and episode of AAFP’s Inside Family Medicine podcast.  

Thank you to all the members who joined us and participated. To get involved in Academy business, complete TAFP’s engagement form at any time or apply for a council position. 

Mark your calendars for TAFP’s remaining CME opportunities this year, including an opportunity to earn CME from TAFP at the Texas Medical Association’s annual meeting.

Primary Care Update at TexMed | April 16 | Corpus Christi

Texas Family Medicine Symposium | June 5 – 7 | San Antonio

Annual Session and Primary Care Summit | November 6 – 8 | The Woodlands

The new requirement stems from passage of Senate Bill 912 in the 2025 legislative session by Sen. César Blanco, (D-El Paso), making Texas one of a growing number of states mandating the use of CE Broker as the exclusive system for tracking and verifying continuing education for a variety of licensed professions.

The company offers a free “Basic” account that it says is sufficient to report required CME for licensure, but it offers three tiers of paid membership ranging from $39.99 to $199.99 per year that provide enhanced support and management features. TMB suggests physicians sign up for an account before September 1 to become acquainted with the system.

The basic CME requirements for licensure remain unchanged. Physicians must report a total of 48 hours every two years, with 24 of those being formal Category 1 or 1-A hours — AMA PRA Category 1 Credits,™ AOA Category 1-A credits, and AAFP Prescribed credits all suffice — and 24 informal hours in any format. 

While the imposition of CE Broker into the TMB licensing and renewal process will likely increase family physicians’ administrative burden, TAFP members will enjoy an advantage, according to TAFP COO Kathy McCarthy. All CME credits members earn from TAFP and AAFP will be automatically logged in their CE Broker accounts. “If you are a member of the Academy or you are maintaining board certification, you are earning more than twice the CME needed for your state license,” she says. “So it may make sense to count all of your AAFP and TAFP CME first and then fill in the rest of the required 48 credits in the simplest way you can. Your Academy invests significant resources to track and report your CME as a way to reduce your stress and administrative burden. Hopefully, those efforts will help as the medical board transitions to this new system.”

For more information on CE Broker and a tutorial on creating an account, watch this video. 

Other CME news to note

In addition to the courses mandated by the Texas Medical Board on pain management, ethics/professional responsibility, and human trafficking, family physicians must now complete a course on pregnancy-related medical emergencies. With the passage of the Life of the Mother Act, or S.B. 31, by Sen. Bryan Hughes, (R- Mineola), family physicians along with doctors in 11 other specified specialties must take a single one-hour course on pregnancy-related medical emergencies. TMB offers the only eligible course for free on MyTMB. All family physicians are required to complete the course, regardless of whether they provide obstetrical care.

The pain management requirement has been reduced from two hours every renewal period to two hours for the first two renewal periods, then two hours every eight years after that.

The human trafficking requirement will now be required only once. If TMB approves more than the one course it currently offers, direct patient care physicians will need to take a course every six years.

TAFP now provides AOA Category 1A credit!

This year, TAFP applied for and received accreditation through the American College of Osteopathic Family Physicians to provide AOA Category 1-A credit for our CME courses. TAFP’s director of CME and compliance, Jessica Miley, is excited to offer AOA credit for the first time at this year’s Texas Family Medicine Symposium, June 5-7 at the Signia by Hilton La Cantera Resort and Spa in San Antonio.

“We chose to offer osteopathic CME credit to better support our DO members in meeting AOA requirements and accessing relevant educational opportunities,” she says. “This ensures our programming remains inclusive, meets the needs of osteopathic physicians, and continues to provide strong value to their membership with TAFP.”

Though he has served in a number of roles throughout the years, Mark Ambler, MD, has spent his entire family medicine career since residency at one place – Austin Regional Clinic. He’s worked on the peer review committee, executive board, clinical quality committee, and currently serves as the associate chief medical officer of primary care. His administrative work hasn’t kept him completely out of the clinic, however, as he still sees patients today. 

Ambler has also precepted medical students and nurse practitioner students over the last 20 years, and serves as the medical director of the Volunteer Healthcare Clinic. Austin Regional Clinic is currently one of TAFP’s Partners in Health.

Who or what inspired you to become a family physician?
My mother was a psychotherapist and always wanted me to become a psychiatrist. I found there was enough psych work in family medicine, but it gave me more variety of conditions to address as well.

What unique challenges are represented in your patient community?
The biggest challenge today is the lack of primary care in general. Unfortunately, there are more family medicine providers retiring every year than graduating from residency. That makes it hard for patients to find a provider, and they often accumulate several conditions to address before they come in. Affordability of care, especially medications, also can be frustrating for patients and providers alike when you think a medication will help, but is too costly.

What are your practice passions?
Like many providers, my patients have aged with me, so I see a lot of geriatric patients. Building those relationships over the years has been very rewarding, so keeping those patients as healthy and active as they can be is my passion.

You've been a preceptor for a number of years. What makes you want to do that work?
We all benefit from others teaching us over the years, so precepting is a good way to give back and some days I learn more from them than they learn from me.

Why do you choose to be a TAFP member?
Being a TAFP member helps link providers all over the state and supports students and residents who will be the backbone of primary care going forward. Solid primary care is the key to valuable medical care for everyone.

What do you enjoy doing outside of medicine?
When I’m not working, I enjoy playing tennis. My dad started teaching me at age 5. Also, just about anything else outside — hiking, biking, kayaking.

TAFP’s Member of the Month program highlights Texas family physicians in TAFP News Now and on the TAFP website. We feature a biography and a Q&A with a different TAFP member each month and his or her unique approach to family medicine. If you know an outstanding family physician colleague who you think should be featured as a Member of the Month or if you’d like to tell your own story, nominate yourself or your colleague by contacting TAFP by email at tafp@tafp.org or by phone at (512) 329-8666. 

Nationwide, this was another record-setting year for family medicine, as the specialty offered and filled more positions than ever before. The NRMP reports that family medicine increased the number of positions offered by 133 positions from 2025 to 2026, and filled 4,613 positions. However, the fill rate declined from 85 to 83.6%, leaving 899 family medicine resident positions unfilled across the country. Read the NRMP's full report on the 2026 match here.

According to the NRMP's report on match rates by specialty and state, Texas family medicine filled 294 of 347 total positions, not including the SOAP. Read the full report here. 

Check out AAFP's Match Day coverage and resources, as well as this March 20 news report, 2026 Match sets records for family medicine positions offered and filled.

Welcoming new residents in training to the “family” of family medicine is among the greatest joys for the members and leaders of TAFP. We hope everyone enjoys their Match Day celebrations. Scroll through TAFP's Instagram for fun match day content.

Whether you were in the inaugural class of the Match in 1952, or plan to match into family medicine in the next few years, the excitement of Match Day is contagious and undeniable. It’s a day of exhilarating anticipation and a time for all to celebrate the incredible specialty of family medicine. 

New residents interested in getting involved with the Academy dedicated to their success should visit TAFP's resident resources for information about TAFP's Student and Resident Summit, TAFP leadership opportunities, travel funding, and more. 

In celebration of Match Day, we recently featured a number of TAFP members who offered advice for medical students hoping to match into family medicine, as well as for new family medicine residents. 

• March Member of the Month: Maria Ferreira Caceres, MD
• Fourth-year medical student ready to start career in rural family medicine: Joshua Mihalik
• PGY2 encourages future residents to maintain personal life outside of residency: Nayeli Fuentes, MD
• Academic physician is hopeful about the future of family medicine: Tatiana Cordova, MD
• El Paso physician teaches to invest in the future of family medicine: Rebecca Campos, MD, FAAFP

To improve timely delivery of specimens, submitters should avoid using regular United States Postal Service for submitting NBS specimens for testing. Specimens sent through standard mail often arrive too late for testing and do not include tracking.

DSHS currently supports courier transportation through Data Rush and FedEx. Many facilities already use courier services for specimen transport. Submitters that currently use a courier service may continue using their existing service.

Submitters that do not have a courier service may enroll in the DSHS newborn screening courier program at no additional cost. Submitters can enroll by completing the Courier Expansion Enrollment Form at bit.ly/49bixDb.

After submitting the form, the DSHS Courier Coordinator will contact the submitter with the next steps for enrollment.

For decades, the U.S. has woefully underinvested in primary care, and patients are paying the price. On Wednesday, March 18, AAFP's EVP and CEO R. Shawn Martin testified before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health for a hearing on the role that clinicians play in making health care more affordable for all Americans. Martin laid out his message to the subcommittee in a blog post entiled "Six ways Congress can make health care affordable for doctors and patients."

Chronic diseases now account for 90% of our $4.9 trillion in annual health care spending. Yet, the U.S. allocates less than 5% of total health expenditures to primary care, a figure that lags far behind other developed nations. Primary care receives a small fraction of overall health care spending, even as it is asked to do more to manage chronic disease, coordinate care, and serve as the front door to the health system. This chronic underinvestment has led to workforce shortages, longer wait times, practice closures and fragmented care that drives costs higher for everyone. It also accelerates health care consolidation, which often makes profit an incentive rather than patient care.

AAFP takes family medicine priorities to Capitol Hill

Last month, AAFP leaders convened on Capitol Hill to push for practical solutions that will improve access to care for patients and improve practice environments for physicians. They engaged directly with lawmakers and urged them to enact policies that would do the following.

• Make primary care more affordable. Ongoing, coordinated care keeps patients healthier, but only if cost-sharing doesn’t stand in the way. When patients worry about surprise charges, they skip essential follow-up and coordination services. That hurts outcomes and raises long-term costs. Primary care must be affordable for it to work.
• Protect access to vaccines. Family physicians are among the most trusted sources for vaccine guidance and delivery. Public policy must continue to be grounded in science and data.
• Enact tax policies that strengthen independent practice and the primary care workforce. Targeted incentives can help support physicians serving rural and underserved communities, care for vulnerable populations and promote practice ownership. Several states have explored or implemented approaches such as these. Together, these incentives can help recruit, retain and sustain primary care where it’s needed most.

Department of Education rule would jeopardize primary care workforce

Why it matters: 

Physicians are the most likely professionals to carry student loan debt, with 81% having graduate school debt and 80% owing due to undergraduate education. 

The high burden of medical education debt contributes to worsening physician shortages and puts medical education out of reach for many potential physicians, further undermining progress toward a robust health care workforce. Given that these challenges slow progress toward better patient and population health outcomes, addressing the burden of student loan debt for physicians and medical students is one essential step to improving our nation’s health care system.

What we’re working on: 

AAFP submitted a letter to the U.S. Department of Education urging the agency to expand individuals’ ability to pursue a career in family medicine, including through thoughtful regulation of federal student loan programs. Our letter asked that the department:

• maintain access to Graduate PLUS loans for medical students or create a medical education carve‑out in the new loan programs to reflect the unique cost structure, training length and public service value of primary care physicians;
• exempt medical education programs from automatic loan proration or provide clear hardship and program‑specific exceptions to ensure that future primary care physicians are not forced into private lending or delaying completion of their education; and
• preserve generous reconsideration and correction mechanisms and ensure that repayment plan transitions do not reset or jeopardize Public Service Loan Forgiveness program eligibility.

AAFP also submitted a letter to Congress expressing concern that many of the higher education reforms in H.R. 1, including a $200,000 cap on professional student loans, will lead to even fewer new primary care physicians.

• In our letter, we called for passage of the REDI Act to mitigate at least a small portion of the financial burden that family physicians and others accrue while they are completing their medical training.

Family physicians weigh in on AI adoption in clinical care

Why it matters: 

The family medicine experience is based on a deeply personal patient-physician relationship that benefits from many supportive technologies, including AI. 

In 2023, the AAFP developed an initial set of principles that we believe must be applied to AI’s implementation across the broad range of settings in which family physicians practice. 

AAFP believes AI tools should be evaluated with the same rigor as any other tool used in health care, and that it has the potential to support the core functions of primary care, which are frequently characterized as first contact, comprehensiveness, continuity and coordination of care.

What we’re working on: 

AAFP submitted comments and joined a sign-on letter to the Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy and Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ASTP/ONC) and recommended ways to establish a stronger approach to use AI as part of clinical care. In our letter, the AAFP highlighted the following.

• AI technologies and medical devices must be integrated into health care in ways that are safe, effective, fair and transparent.
• HHS should include practicing physicians throughout the AI lifecycle and establish advisory panels that include primary care physicians to ensure AI tools are aligned with real-world clinical workflows and patient needs. An AAFP survey conducted jointly with Rock Health in September 2024 found that many primary care physicians reported having little to no involvement in these decision‑making processes. This can lead to AI tools being implemented that impede, rather than improve, clinical workflows.
• AAFP strongly believes that AI tools should enhance, not burden, clinical practice. We support HHS prioritizing research on AI products that streamline documentation, reduce administrative burden and support clinical decision-making.
• AAFP recommends modernizing payment policies so practices, especially small and independent practices, can invest in the infrastructure needed for AI integration.

Also in the health IT arena, the AAFP submitted comments to ASTP/ONC and urged the agency to maintain key privacy, security and transparency requirements in the Health IT Certification Program and ensure that the health care system maintains a robust health IT landscape while reducing administrative burden and spurring innovation.

On the legislative side, the AAFP submitted a letter for the record ahead of a Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions hearing with Dr. Thomas Keane, Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy and National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. In the letter, the Academy outlined how the committee can support the recommendations the AAFP shared with ASTP/ONC in its two recent comment letters.

AAFP urges Congress to support health care research 

Why it matters: 

Too many Americans struggle to get the care they need. Patients face long wait times, high costs and care that doesn’t always improve their health. At the same time, many physicians are burned out. Health services research helps find practical solutions to these problems. But when funding is cut, it becomes harder for our country to improve care and health outcomes.

What we’re working on:

• AAFP signed onto a letter to Congress asking lawmakers to fully fund the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality in the next fiscal year.
• AHRQ provides research and data that help doctors, patients and policymakers make smarter health care decisions. Its work helps ensure that people get high-quality care at a reasonable cost.
• We urged Congress to provide at least $500 million for AHRQ so it can continue research that makes care safer and more affordable.
• We also asked HHS to support adequate staffing and resources so AHRQ can effectively manage its programs, research grants and scientific review process.

What we're reading

The voice of a physician has always carried weight, especially when it comes to advocacy for public policies. In a new First Opinion essay in STAT, AAFP President Sarah C. Nosal, MD, writes that it’s more important than ever for doctors to leverage their authority to push for a variety of changes that shape care both inside and beyond the exam room.

AAFP Board Chair Jen Brull, MD, spoke to Healio about how a proposed rule would cap graduate student loan borrowing. 

AAFP’s Robert Graham Center’s new thematic report on chronic disease was covered in Marketplace. The report explores how primary care plays a vital role in in the prevention, early detection and management of chronic disease while helping reduce the financial burden on both the U.S. health care system and its patients.

For the latest policy updates impacting family medicine, follow us at @aafp_advocacy.

Rebecca Campos, MD, FAAFP, can tell you exactly the moment she realized a career in medicine was for her. Her elementary school teacher introduced the class to her own siblings — twin physicians serving their hometown community of El Paso. Campos says that their example sparked an interest in her. She also credits an unexpected opportunity to teach a high school algebra class with the realization that she wanted to teach. It wasn’t until medical school and residency that she realized she could do both.

Campos is now a course director for clinical skills in the pre-clerkship curriculum at Texas Tech Physicians of El Paso, where she blends compassionate care with meaningful teaching. “My journey has taught me that sometimes your path unfolds in layers — and when you remain open to opportunity, your passions can come together in ways you never imagined,” says Campos.

What advice would you give to students who are choosing a specialty?
When I meet with students, I encourage them to look at what field both ignites and sustains their interest. While there are many fields that can be fascinating, find which one will maintain the feeling of fulfillment daily and as they look forward five, 10, and 20 years from now. Align their personal strengths with their personality traits, such as the steady, long-term relationship with patients in continuity versus a fast-paced, intense environment. Every field will have both rewards and strengths, as well as trade-offs.

How do you feel about the future of the specialty?
I am hopeful and encouraged about the future of family medicine. Our specialty provides a unique relationship with longevity and depth that absolutely no other field offers. The ability to expand skills within our specialty or direct our skills more narrowly provides the flexibility to shift a practice to meet the patient’s needs and physician’s new interests. 

What makes family medicine worth choosing?
What makes family medicine a highly rewarding and valuable path is the comprehensive nature that allows meaningful patient and family relationships through the patient’s entire life. The families that span multiple generations demonstrate a continuity that is unique to our specialty and is the best example of a patient-physician relationship built on trust, purpose, and professional fulfillment.

The breadth and adaptability that family medicine offers allows us to build our practice around our interests and passions. It is a privileged experience to walk through the different seasons in a patient and family’s life. Being able to teach a wide breadth of medicine to a variety of learners in different stages of their education has also been remarkably fulfilling.

This member profile is part of TAFP's coverage of Match Day 2026, taking place on March 20, 2026. Check out all of TAFP's Match Day coverage here.

Tatiana Cordova, MD, says she was interested in medicine as far back as she can remember. She’s always had a desire to help people and was always shown how to be a helper by her father. After completing medical school, residency, and a fellowship, she knew she wanted to stay in academia as a way to “pay it back” in honor of those who taught her.

She is now core faculty for the family medicine residency program at UT Health San Antonio and serves as associate program director and medical director for the family medicine hospitalist service there. “Nothing beats every June when I reflect on how far each and every trainee has come during their residency training,” Cordova says.

What advice would you give to students who are choosing a specialty?
I would advise them to seek as many early opportunities as possible for clinical exposure to help guide them into their decisions and to keep an open mind to all options. There are some students that come into medical school with a preconceived notion of what their future holds or even what a specific specialty looks like, but are often surprised in their ultimate choice as they become more familiar with the various opportunities.

How do you feel about the future of the specialty?
Despite the many changes happening in our world, I believe the future is bright as we have more family medicine physicians who are passionate about their communities and the needs of their patients, and are dedicated enough to seek alternative ways to ensure their needs are met.

What are your hopes for future family docs?
I hope everyone understands the importance of advocacy and community involvement to better serve our patients. It's important to become involved to ensure our patient’s and community's voice is heard

What makes family medicine worth choosing?
Family medicine opens the door to many opportunities, whether through fellowship or your own choice in practice, but none better than the connections with individual patients and their families. Also, the opportunity to counsel and educate patients to prevent advancement of their medical conditions and the ability to practice full-spectrum medicine and to care for a family in all stages of their life.

What keeps you passionate about family medicine?
Being able to support my patients and the ability to educate the community. In my role as faculty I have been able to participate in various community engagement events which furthers the community connections that allow us to make a difference.

This member profile is part of TAFP's coverage of Match Day 2026, taking place on March 20, 2026. Check out all of TAFP's Match Day coverage here.

Raised in a large, blended family in San Antonio, Joshua Mihalik chose medicine because a desire to help others was instilled in him from an early age. He might be the first physician in his family, but a few relatives helped light the way to a medical career. His father served in the Army, providing care to those wounded in active duty, and his stepfather has a long career as a nurse who now practices at the VA. Now a fourth-year student at Texas Tech Health El Paso, Mihalik plans to match into rural family medicine on Match Day.

How did you choose family medicine?
I think of my path to family medicine as three trails that ended up meeting at the end of the hike, with family medicine as the finish. For me, I realized early in medical school how much joy I get from interacting with patients and building real relationships with them daily. After that, the versatility of family medicine really drew me into the specialty. Like many medical students, I love learning and have a yearning to know as much as I can so I can be the best physician I can be.

To me, family medicine represents the crux of mastering a lot of diverse information and skills, using them to find and provide the best care for your patient and condensing it into accessible bites for patients. Lastly, I have been moved to always ask myself if I am serving others as much as I can, and this has led me to pursue more advocacy. In family medicine, I believe family doctors are the ideal health care providers to help bridge the gap between the voices of patients and those who decide how they receive health care.

What are your hopes for your career?
I hope to practice rural family medicine in Texas, with a balance of inpatient, outpatient, and obstetrics, while working with my partner to improve the health of the community we end up in. I also hope to become further involved in the legislative process for health care in Texas to help strengthen the voices of physicians in making decisions regarding how health care is conducted. I plan to do this by becoming more involved in TAFP and AAFP, as well as local chapters where I practice. I also hope to become a mentor to future medical students and hopefully inspire them to pursue family medicine as well.

What would you tell medical students who are early in their education about preparing for match and choosing a specialty?
I wish I had sought out a mentor sooner in medical school, so that is always my top advice for incoming medical students and those seeking guidance for their future career. I am fortunate to have found a family medicine mentor in the past year who has helped me prepare for my future in ways I did not think of but am so grateful for now. A mentor is a priceless source of wisdom, information, and reassurance when you are overthinking everything as application season approaches.

What surprised you most about interview season?
How nice everyone was! All the applicants, residents, residency program staff, and administration were so nice throughout the interview process. I feel very blessed to be going into a field with so many people who will make going to work that much easier.

What was the hardest part of the match process?
Deciding on my top-ranking programs. Because everyone is so nice, it really came down to what my goals for the future are and how each program could help me achieve those goals while helping me remember why I chose family medicine in the first place. I know wherever I end up, I will work with the program and my co-residents to become the best family doctor I can be for my future patients and community.

This member profile is part of TAFP's coverage of Match Day 2026, taking place on March 20, 2026. Check out all of TAFP's Match Day coverage here.

Nayeli Fuentes, MD, graduated as valedictorian in her class at Mount Pleasant High School, completed an undergraduate degree as a triple major and a first-generation college student, and earned her medical degree from Texas Tech in Lubbock. She returned to the region of Texas that raised her for residency, now studying at the UT Tyler School of Medicine. As a second-year family medicine resident, her memories of Match Day are pretty fresh in her mind.

How did you prepare for Match Day?
The days leading up to Match Day were a whirlwind of excitement, fear, and anxiety. What grounded me most was practicing gratitude. I constantly reminded myself how fortunate I was to even be in this position; many don’t have the opportunity to pursue higher education, let alone become a physician. Reframing the stress as a privilege helped me realize that regardless of the result, I was honored to continue my training at any of the amazing family medicine programs in Texas.

What was match day like for you?
Match Day was pretty special. I was surrounded by my family and friends. I got to open the envelope that said I would come back to Northeast Texas to continue my training. I’ll never forget that feeling — the realization that years of hard work had finally paid off and that I would be able to serve the very community that supported my journey from the beginning.

What would you tell future residents about starting out in family medicine?
My biggest piece of advice for future residents is to never lose sight of who you are outside of the white coat. Residency is demanding, and the field of family medicine is uniquely challenging, but your values and passions are what will sustain you. Find the hobbies that fuel you, lean on friends who push you to be your best self, and seek out mentors who genuinely care about your growth. When you nurture your own well-being, you become a much more resilient advocate for your patients. For me, distance running has been that vital outlet — it reminds me that there is life and joy beyond the long hours of residency.

What was the hardest part of the Match process?
The hardest part was ranking such an incredible slate of programs. Texas is home to so many family medicine programs that produce well-rounded, exceptional physicians. During interviews, I met residents I truly admired and could see myself working alongside at almost every stop.

How has involvement in TAFP and organized medicine shaped your journey?
Organized medicine has quite literally shaped me into the physician I am today. As a medical student, I participated in the Texas Family Medicine Preceptorship Program, where I first discovered the true breadth of the field. My preceptor, Fiona Prabhu, MD, inspired me to choose this path. Now as a resident, staying involved with TAFP has provided me with invaluable mentorship and a platform to hone my leadership and advocacy skills. It’s powerful to be surrounded by like-minded individuals who are all fighting for the patient’s best interest.

What makes family medicine worth choosing?
Family medicine is unique because it allows you to build lifelong relationships while practicing complex diagnostic and preventive care. While medicine has its difficult moments, I am fueled by the small victories. Whether it’s helping a patient finally get their A1C under control or explaining why a screening is vital for their future, walking with patients through their most vulnerable moments is a joy and a responsibility I don't take lightly. I want my patients to know they have an advocate fighting for them every single day as their PCP.

This member profile is part of TAFP's coverage of Match Day 2026, taking place on March 20, 2026. Check out all of TAFP's Match Day coverage here.

That is why the TAFP Board of Directors voted in January to strongly endorse the Child Psychiatry Access Network (CPAN) and the Perinatal Psychiatry Access Network (PeriPAN) as trusted clinical resources for family medicine practices.

CPAN and PeriPAN provide real-time access to mental health experts, including child, adolescent, and reproductive psychiatry. These programs are designed to support family physicians through:

• real-time peer-to-peer phone consultation;
• vetted, personalized referrals and resources;
• one-time direct psychiatric consultations so your patients don’t wait; and
• free high-yield CME offerings.

CPAN supports mental health care for children and adolescents, while PeriPAN provides expertise for the mental health care of pregnant and postpartum women.

Importantly, this access model works. Research published in “Clinical Pediatrics” in 2023 found a 43% increase in the identification of mental and behavioral health conditions after clinicians enrolled in the Wisconsin Child Psychiatry Consultation Program — a model similar to CPAN. These findings underscore how access networks like CPAN and PeriPAN strengthen family physicians’ ability to recognize and address mental health needs earlier and more effectively.

How CPAN and PeriPAN work

• Call (888) 907-2726 with a question or concern.
• A trained mental health expert answers immediately (Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. CT).
• If needed, a psychiatrist will call back within 30 minutes or at a time that works for you.

These programs reflect the central role family physicians play in identifying and coordinating mental health care. By using CPAN and PeriPAN, we can address concerns earlier and improve outcomes for patients and families across Texas.

No question is too small, and I encourage you to use these resources as often as needed.

You can stay up to date with CPAN and PeriPAN program features, free CME opportunities, and additional resources on Facebook and LinkedIn.

After being raised and completing medical school in Bucaramanga, Colombia, Maria Ferreira Caceres, MD, completed residency at the UTRGV Family Medicine Residency at Knapp Medical Center in Mercedes, Texas. She earned multiple recognitions during her residency career, including Resident of the Year two years in a row and a Family Medicine Leads scholarship from the AAFP Foundation, as well as completing TAFP’s Resident Leadership Experience and serving as TAFP’s Resident Alternate Delegate to AAFP’s National Conference (now called FUTURE).

Caceres is in the first few years of her career post-residency, working in Edinburg at the Family Medicine and Geriatric Center, where she practices comprehensive, patient-centered care. She has a practice emphasis on prevention, continuity, and long-term patient relationships.

Who or what inspired you to become a family physician?
My greatest inspiration has always been my father, a primary care physician who taught me the values of compassion, empathy, respect, and service to the community. Watching him care for patients with humility and dedication made me fall in love with family medicine from an early age. His example and his belief in the power of long-term, meaningful patient-doctor relationships continue to guide every aspect of my practice.

As a new physician, what are your plans for your career in family medicine?
I am committed to lifelong learning, clinical excellence, and strengthening my role as an advocate for underserved and underrepresented communities. I plan to deepen my leadership involvement within TAFP and AAFP, continue participating in advocacy work, and mentor the next generation of physicians. As an IMG, I am especially passionate about elevating the voices of international medical graduates and promoting greater diversity and inclusion within our profession. Ultimately, I aim to contribute meaningfully to improving health care delivery and expanding access to high-quality primary care.

What has surprised you most about family medicine?
What has surprised me the most is how deeply fulfilling it is to build long-term relationships with patients and to walk with them through every stage of life. Family medicine gives you the privilege of truly knowing your patients, their families, their struggles, and their goals, and being able to make a real impact on their well-being. Each day brings something new to learn, and the breadth of the specialty continues to energize and inspire me.

Why do you choose to be a TAFP member?
TAFP has played a central role in shaping my professional growth. Through mentorship, leadership training, and opportunities to represent my peers, TAFP has empowered me to grow as an advocate and leader. The organization has helped me refine my skills, understand the challenges facing family medicine, and prepare to contribute to meaningful policy and community work. Being part of TAFP is more than membership, it is being part of a supportive community dedicated to advancing the future of our specialty.

As you know, Match Day takes place this month! As a new physician, do you have words of wisdom for students getting ready to match this month?
Match month is a powerful, emotional milestone, but I want you to step into it with confidence and expectation of good things. You did not arrive here by accident. You earned this moment through relentless dedication, courage, and heart. Trust that the work you've poured into your training matters. Trust that doors are opening. The Match is not here to defeat you — it is here to place you where you can thrive. Believe that good outcomes are possible for you. Believe that your dream is within reach. Nothing is impossible when preparation meets perseverance, and you have both. See yourself opening that email with joy. See yourself stepping into a program that values you, challenges you, and helps you grow into the physician you're meant to be. Be gentle with yourself. Lean on the people who love you. Take care of the human behind the white coat. The world needs your compassion, your intelligence, your resilience. Fight for your dreams with faith, not fear. You are ready. You are capable. And this month, expect good news because you have already done the extraordinary work it takes to earn it.

What do you enjoy doing outside of medicine?
Outside of medicine, I love traveling and exploring different cultures. I enjoy watching movies, spending quality time with my husband, family, and friends, and caring for my dog, Firulais, whom I adopted at the start of residency and who has become a cherished part of my life.

TAFP’s Member of the Month program highlights Texas family physicians in TAFP News Now and on the TAFP website. We feature a biography and a Q&A with a different TAFP member each month and his or her unique approach to family medicine. If you know an outstanding family physician colleague who you think should be featured as a Member of the Month or if you’d like to tell your own story, nominate yourself or your colleague by contacting TAFP by email at tafp@tafp.org or by phone at (512) 329-8666. 

Earlier this month, the House passed the Senate-amended government funding package and President Trump signed it into law, ensuring continued operations for key federal agencies, including the Department of Health and Human Services. 

The bipartisan agreement reflects successful cross-party negotiations and provides meaningful stability for health care programs that patients and clinicians rely on every day.

The package includes several significant health care advancements, including:

• A multi-year reauthorization of the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education program through 2029
• Continued funding for Community Health Centers and the National Health Service Corps through the end of the year
• A two-year extension of telehealth flexibilities through 2027
• A reauthorization of the Preventing Maternal Deaths Act and Prematurity Research Expansion and Education for Mothers who deliver Infants Early (PREMIE) Reauthorization Act 

Together, these provisions strengthen the primary care workforce, expand access in underserved communities and preserve virtual care options for patients.

AAFP urges Congress to make health care more affordable

AAFP urged Congress to make health care more accessible and affordable for Americans. In our letter in response to recent hearings with health insurance executives, AAFP outlined practices that undermine the viability of primary care and can harm patient outcomes, including:

• Practice acquisitions to maximize profits
• Downcoding payments for office visits
• Lower physician payments in Medicare Advantage
• Inadequate investment in primary care
• Utilization management that delays care
• Medicare Advantage coding practices that fragment care

AAFP encourages Congress to pass several policies that would rein in some of these tactics and ensure that our nation is meaningfully investing in primary care. Some specific bills cited in the letter include the:

• Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act (H.R. 3514 / S. 1816)
• Prompt and Fair Pay Act (H.R. 4559)
• Reducing Medically Unnecessary Delays in Care Act (H.R. 2433)
• Safe Step Act (H.R. 5509)

AAFP comments on proposed Medicare Advantage and Part D changes

Why it matters: 

Medicare Advantage policies directly affect primary care delivery. A 2023 AAFP survey found that 18% of patients in family medicine practices were enrolled in MA plans, underscoring the program’s impact on day-to-day care for older adults and patients with complex needs. 

What we’re working on: 

AAFP recently submitted comments on CMS’s proposed Medicare Advantage (MA) and Part D rule. In 2023, CMS finalized a requirement that plans publish an annual health equity analysis of utilization management.

• AAFP strongly supported this proposal, which would make the use and impact of prior authorization much more transparent. Our letter urged CMS to maintain the reporting requirements and extend similar oversight to Part D plans.
• While we appreciate prior public commitments by insurers to streamline, simplify and reduce the burden of prior authorization, these efforts are voluntary and subject to no enforcement by anyone other than the plans themselves.
• Our comments also supported CMS proposals to streamline the process for beneficiaries to change plans when their physician leaves a plan’s network and encouraged CMS to consider Star Ratings measures that evaluate physician experience with plan operations and a plan’s investment in primary care.

Family physicians: Discrimination harms mental and physical health

AAFP, together with the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the American College of Physicians and the American Psychiatric Association, urged HHS to drop a proposed change to its disability nondiscrimination rule under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.

The proposal would exclude gender dysphoria from the definition of disability, which is likely to create confusion for patients and clinicians. Adding new language could increase administrative burden, delay care and weaken protections for vulnerable patients.

New research: Regular access to primary care is associated with lower hospitalizations and emergency department visits in adults and children 

Regular access to primary care is strongly linked to lower hospital use, reduced costs and higher rates of preventive care for both adults and children with chronic disease, according to new research from AAFP’s Robert Graham Center.

The new report, Investing in Primary Care: The Missing Strategy in America’s Fight Against Chronic Disease, examines how primary care supports prevention, early detection and management of leading causes of illness and death, including heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Key findings include:

• Adults with a usual source of primary care have 20% lower odds of hospitalization and 11% fewer emergency department visits, while children with chronic conditions experience about 50% fewer avoidable ED visits and hospitalizations.
• Ongoing primary care is also associated with substantially lower total health care spending—nearly 54% lower for adults and 40% lower for children—and markedly higher uptake of recommended preventive services.

What we're reading

AAFP EVP and CEO Shawn Martin wrote an op-ed in Chief Healthcare Executive about how the country must double down on investment in primary care to ensure that everyone has access to a family physician. 

Former AAFP president Steve Furr, MD, FAAFP, joined the Mayo Clinic’s Health Matters podcast to discuss the urgent need for policies that improve access to care in rural communities. 

Modern Healthcare featured a recent AAFP letter advocating for Medicare payment reform, particularly citing that budget neutrality requirements squeeze patients and physicians. 

For the latest policy updates impacting family medicine, follow us at @aafp_advocacy.

AstraZeneca, one of TAFP’s proud Partners in Health, has released a new set of infographics based on the report to be used as a resource in treating patients. They also have a helpful COPD discharge checklist.

TAFP’s Partners in Health program connects family physicians with organizations committed to supporting family medicine and promoting the health of all Texans. Our Partners provide patient education and high-value tools designed to help family physicians and their care teams deliver well-coordinated, comprehensive primary care. Go to Partners in Health to learn more.

Senate Bill 1188 by Sen. Lois Kolkhorst (R-Brenham) implements new regulations on electronic health records, including a section on AI. It allows a health care practitioner to use AI technology for diagnostic purposes, provided:

• the practitioner is acting within the scope of their license or certification,
• the particular use of AI is not prohibited or restricted by law, and
• the practitioner reviews any records generated by AI in accordance with standards developed by the Texas Medical Board.

S.B. 1188 also states that a practitioner using AI for diagnostic purposes “must disclose the practitioner’s use of that technology to the practitioner’s patients.”

House Bill 149 by Rep. Giovanni Capriglione (R-Southlake) relates to the regulation of AI use in Texas more broadly. For physicians and other health professionals, the bill requires providers to disclose the use of AI to patients or to patients’ personal representatives “not later than the date the service or treatment is first provided ...,” except in the case of emergency. It also requires that the disclosure be clear and conspicuous, and that it “must be written in plain language.”

Failure to comply with these laws could result in the loss or suspension of a physician’s medical license, and may incur civil penalties.

The Texas Medical Liability Trust suggests some practical steps physicians can take to manage their use of AI, including the following.

• Establish or update your practice governance policies covering AI use, training, and audit trails. The American Medical Association has published a comprehensive guide to managing AI integration into health care systems.
• Fully document AI's role if used to make clinical decisions.
• Practice transparent communication with patients about AI use.
• Ensure AI tools do not use patients' health information to train other AI tools.

For more information about complying with these new state laws, read TMLT’s article, “New AI disclosure requirements for physicians passed into Texas law.”

Additional resources

American Medical Association: Governance for Augmented Intelligence

Texas Medical Association: Physicians must disclose AI use alongside existing HIPAA requirements, per state laws

AAFP: Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Family Medicine