By David Teuscher, MD
TOA President 

The AAOS Board of Councilors (BOC) wants to make you aware of their Orthopaedic Key Contact Program for the US Congress.  This program was established through the BOC last year.  It is an attempt to identify orthopaedic surgeons from around the nation who have contacts, or are willing to develop personal relationships with their members of 

Vicki Truitt entered public service not in pursuit of political aspirations, but because of her genuine concern for the people of the area where she grew up. Since her election, she has earned a leadership role in the Texas House of Representatives as the Chairman of Budget and Oversight for the House Committee on Public Health, and sits on the powerful Appropriations Committee. She is the Vice-Chairman and one of only five House members serving on the influential Sunset Advisory Commission that can recommend the abolition of a state agency, and evaluates the performance of state agencies to make recommendations for improved operations. She is also a member of the Executive 

Committee of the Texas Office for Prevention of Developmental Disabilities.

Outside the Texas Legislature, Rep. Truitt has worked in the health care field for more than 30 years. She worked in administration at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, Texas and for the medical staff at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth. In 1984, she established a small consulting company that provides medical staff development services for physicians and hospitals in Texas. She obtained certification from the American College of Medical Staff Development, and has lectured extensively to medical students and physicians in training at postdoctoral physician training programs across the state.

A believer in community service, she was the driving force in establishing an emergency pharmacy fund, and secured private funding to provide medicine for needy patients of a northeast Tarrant County community health clinic. As a community leader, she is a member of the Northeast Leadership Forum, and, among others, has served on the boards and executive committees of Metroport Meals On Wheels and the Arts Council of Northeast Tarrant County.

Vicki is a seventh generation Texan and lifelong resident of Northeast Tarrant County. She is married to Jim Truitt and has two adult daughters, Becki and Lisa, and five grandchildren. Her grandchildren are her favorite pastime, but she also enjoys cooking, reading, and horseback riding. In a former life, she trained and showed Paint horses and was a barrel racer and rodeo queen.

Email Vicki Truitt to thank her for her work!
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participating physicians can accept assignment on Medicare claims on a case-by-case basis. Physicians who choose to opt out of Medicare entirely are bound only by private contracts with their patients, and cannot opt back in for two years. In light of scheduled reductions in Medicare reimbursement, physicians should keep in mind that, although active lobbying is underway to reverse the cuts, there are no guarantees that Congress will do so before the end of the year or at all. However, should Congress choose to act on the cuts in early 2007, past experience shows that the enrollment period may be reopened to allow physicians to modify their status based on the new fee schedule. For more information: click here (AAOS News Bulletin) and here (California Physician CMA Alert).
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