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Protecting Physician Wellness and Patient Safety
The state of Colorado is taking away an important piece of the peer assistance program that prioritizes physician health and well-being, ultimately helping them to provide better quality of care to their patients. For the last 35 years, the state has held a long-standing precedent of ensuring that all physicians who voluntarily seek help through a state peer assistance program, funded through physician licensing fees, will receive confidential treatment as long as they remain compliant with their treatment plan.
Then, without explanation or consultation with the medical community or the Colorado Medical Board, the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA), decided to make a change that will end a key confidentiality component of the program that helps doctors. This change goes into effect later this year and requires all physicians who voluntarily seek treatment through this program to sign a release of privacy information. Without the confidentiality protections, few doctors will use the program.
A united coalition of doctors, health care providers, and local and national medical organizations are asking you to walk back this change, and instead continue to ensure an accessible, confidential and accountable peer assistance program for all doctors.
Encouraging and allowing our doctors to practice what they preach about preventative medicine, just like they advise their patients, will promote better health for all of us.
Please, Gov. Polis walk back this change, for the sake of our health care community and for patient safety.