The surveys are in and participants were overwhelmingly satisfied with the Physician Advocacy Day! In fact, 91 percent said they would attend the event again.

It was a day of meetings. Every registrant was schedule to meet with at least one legislator, and many met with two. In all, physicians and medical students met with 28 legislators. Legislators had lunch with participants, met them in their private office and even took time to meet with them right outside the House Chamber. 

More than 100 participants discussed ISMA legislative priorities with their representatives, including HB 1040, Violence Against Healthcare Workers. Since health care workers face workplace violence at rates far exceeding other professions, legislation has been drafted to enhance penalties for attacks on health care workers. 

Insurance reform, prior authorization and payer practices are addressed in HB 1271 Payment of Health Claims and SB 189 Nonparticipating Providers. Building on SEA 480 for last year (2025), ISMA supports transparency in peer-to-peer reviews, including disclosure of reviewers’ credentials. ISMA opposes using AI as the primary basis for denying care and supports physician review and disclosure of AI involvement in coverage decisions. ISMA is pursuing legislation to prevent insurers from downcoding claims, often done automatically without clinical review. Legislators were urged to protect patients, physicians, and hospitals from inappropriate insurer penalties tied to out-of-network care, such as Anthem/ Elevance’s “Use of a Nonparticipating Care Provider.”

Before heading to the Statehouse, Rep. Brad Barrett, MD, Ryan Singerman, DO, FAAFP, and J. Elizabeth Struble, MD, prepared participants with key talking points and a tracker for the 43 bills ISMA is currently tracking. They encouraged participants to connect with legislators on a personal level and discuss issues that matter. 

“We were able to bypass scope,” Dr. Barrett said. “I think it is going to continue to be an issue. We just got lucky this year.”

Dr. Barrett referenced the two dead bills addressing scope this year during the 8-week short session: SB 221, Pharmacist Treatment by Standing Order, and SB 60, Advanced Practice of Registered Nurses. As the chairman of the public health committee, Dr. Barrett has been a champion for ISMA and physicians in the state of Indiana. Barrett says he will conclude his time representing House District 56 in the Indiana House of Representatives after eight years and will not seek reelection in 2026. Executive Vice President Julie Reed, JD, recognized Dr. Barrett for his years of service to the state and ISMA. 

A special thank you to everyone who represented the 10,000 physicians and medical students of ISMA. ISMA is looking forward to making the next Physician Advocacy Day even better!