Advertisers’ Index
Athena Health
26
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Avery Custom Exteriors
31
4
IBC
28
IFC
10
6
Semonin (Joyce St Clair)
19, 31
Signature Green Properties
1, 31
State Volunteer Mutual Insurance Co
2
University of Louisville Dept. of Infectious Diseases
25
www.iduofl.us
13
mynortondoctor.com
The Pain Institute
10
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www.niai.com
Norton Healthcare Physicians
Republic Bank
www.signaturegreenproperties.com
www.murphypaincenter.com
National Insurance Agency
31
www. JoyceStClair.semonin.com
www.kentuckyonehealth.org
Murphy Pain Center
Practice Administrative Systems
www.republicbank.com
www.painstopshere.org
KentuckyOne Health
20
www.pasmedicalbilling.com
www.floydmemorial.com/home-health
Kentuckiana Pain Specialists
PNC
www.pnc.com/cashflowinsight
www.elmcroft.com/skillednursing
Floyd Memorial Home Healthcare
8
www.pmcindiana.com
www.averycustomexteriors.com
Elmcroft Health & Rehabilitation
Physicians Medical Center
VanZandt, Emrich & Cary
10
www.vzecins.com
OBC
www.thepaininstitute.com
(continued from page 30)
benefits to the communities resulting from
fracking provide for improved quality of
life for local citizens and greater ability to
pay for continued access to medical care
services. Their arguments favoring the
short-term economic benefits while citing
the absence of known toxicity from fracking. There are no randomized controlled
clinical trials comparing the health of one
town with fracking and a demographically
matched town without it.
Those in opposition to fracking cite the
growing body of literature that has shown
directly or indirectly the chemicals used
in fracking are causing environmental and
human harm. Some pointed out that as the
companies exhausted drilling sites, the economic support would dwindle, putting the
communities back into financial challenge.
The physicians at the Pennsylvania Medical
Society House of Delegate had to weigh
the very real short-term benefits to local
citizens with the health hazards of potential
exposure to known carcinogens.
In the end the Pennsylvania Medical Society House of Delegates adopted a modified
version of the resolution advanced by the big
city medical society. Rather than call for an
32
LOUISVILLE MEDICINE
immediate moratorium, the final approved
version called for the Environmental Protection Agency to release its interim report to
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania so that
the state may take appropriate steps if that
report were to demonstrate harm.
The debate on the floor of the House of
Delegates swirled around the ethical role
of physicians in larger social and economic
issues. Do physician need to take a stand?
The Pennsylvania group felt it did—but also
that it recognized economic harm (and subsequent medical harm if access to care lost)
if fracking were discontinued in the state.
The loss of jobs related to the fracking industry would be devastating. But the other
view was that physicians need to stand up to
larger issues of government and economics
that place health at a lower priority than
jobs. Comments at the House of Delegates
spoke of the moral authority that physicians
have when it comes to the health of the public. If doctors don’t acknowledge the values
of promoting health, then who else will? The
challenges for the health of Kentuckians
are similar. It will be the role of organized
medicine in this Commonwealth to adopt
positions of advocacy for the public health
of Kentuckians.
References:
1. Mobile Oil: Animation of Hydraulic Fracturing (fracking) YouTube http://www.
youtube.com/watch?v=VY34PQUiwOQ
(last accessed 11/24/13)
2. 2013 House of Delegates, Pennsylvania
Medical Society, Reference Committee
D Staff Background Information, Background on Resolution 13-402 http://www.
pamedsoc.org/MainMenuCategories/
PAMED-Community/Leadership/LeadershipGroups/Reference-Committees/
Reference-Committee-D/Ref-Com-DBackground.html (last accessed 11/24/13)
3. Slatin C, Levenstein C. An energy policy
that provides clean and green power.
New Solut. 2013;23(1):1-5. doi: 10.2190/
NS.23.1.a.
4. Mitka M. Rigorous evidence slim for determining health risks from natural gas
fracking. JAMA. 2012 May 23;307(20):21356. doi: 10.1001/jama.2012.3726.
5. Weinberger SE, Lawrence HC 3rd, Henley DE, Alden ER, Hoyt DB. Legislative
interference with the patient-physician relationship. N Engl J Med. 2012
Oct 18;367(16):1557-9. doi: 0.1056/
NEJMsb1209858. L
M
Note: Dr. James is the Corporate Medical Director of Clinical Policy at The AmeriHealth
Caritas Family of Companies in Philadelphia.