Meg Edison is a pediatrician who blogs at her self-titled site, Meg Edison. She can be reached on Twitter @megedison.  

The inspiring story of how a physician fought MOC against all odds

Physician
May 16, 2019

Well, I won. Six years after I started down the very slow process to end forced MOC in my state, it happened. On December 27, 2018 Michigan governor Rick Snyder signed HB 4134 and 4135 into law. The harm BCBS caused me and my patients will never happen to another pediatrician in Michigan.

I know. Crazy. I’m still in shock. It’s taken a while to process it enough to …

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The inspiring story of how a physician fought MOC against all odds

The story of a physician who fought back against MOC

Physician
June 16, 2018

Today one of my favorite families came for a visit.  The kids were behind on their check-ups, but this wasn’t too surprising. Their young mom was recently diagnosed with stage 3 cancer and was working her way through surgeries and chemo.  The length of time since our last visit made me worry that mom’s health kept the kids from their routine visits,  but upon entering the room she looked well. …

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The story of a physician who fought back against MOC

The AMA calls for an immediate end to MOC

Physician
June 16, 2016

Shhh. I think this is supposed to be a secret, but this Wednesday at the super-elite AMA House of Delegates meeting in Chicago, where only the mostly highly connected and AMA devoted doctors get to attend, they actually stood up for us.  It is now AMA policy that the AMA opposes mandatory ABMS recertification exams.

Crazy, right?  News of this random act of fortitude trickled out to us on Twitter by the small …

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The AMA calls for an immediate end to MOC

This pediatrician declined to do MOC. See what happened to her.

Physician
May 17, 2016

voluntary

The American Board of Medical Specialties says “board certification is a voluntary process, and one that is very different from medical licensure.” This is echoed by my board, the American Board of Pediatrics, who says, “Board certification is a voluntary process that goes above and beyond state licensing requirements for practicing medicine.”

Over the past few years, …

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This pediatrician declined to do MOC. See what happened to her.

In the fight against MOC, physicians are the underdogs

Physician
February 17, 2016

Wow. For those who think MOC isn’t a big deal, my open letter to the American Board of Pediatrics just hit 70,000 views.  That’s stunning.

For those commending my bravery,  realize efforts like this are not done in isolation. I am not alone. I have the most amazing partners. I can’t even express how blessed I am to work with the ten doctors in our private practice. Not only do we …

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In the fight against MOC, physicians are the underdogs

Stop MOC: An open letter to the American Board of Pediatrics

Physician
January 31, 2016

Dear American Board of Pediatrics:

On December 17 2015, at 3:01 in the middle of my busy day seeing patients, I voluntarily gave up my American Board of Pediatrics certification. I thought I should write this letter, hopefully preempting any more threatening emails warning me that I must pay up or lose my certification. This was not mere oversight on my part. This was purposeful.

The reason I am no longer ABP …

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Stop MOC: An open letter to the American Board of Pediatrics

Our most celebrated pediatricians are not maintaining certification

Physician
June 19, 2015

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My inbox has been flooded lately with emails from fellow pediatricians begging for help fighting the American Board of Pediatrics MOC program. These are doctors with decades in the care of children, now threatened with complete loss of their ability to practice because of the onerous ABP MOC process.  In trying to help my colleagues, I visited the ABP website today and …

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Our most celebrated pediatricians are not maintaining certification

Confessions of a rebound doctor: The impact of narrow networks

Policy
August 29, 2014

“We lost our regular doctor with Obamacare, so now we have to see you.”

I routinely ask my new patients how they heard about our pediatric office, and this is the answer I dread most. My pediatric practice is a very nice and modern private office, and in my opinion, full of excellent physicians. I entrust my own children’s care to my partners. But none of that matters when you’re the rebound doctor, the …

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Confessions of a rebound doctor: The impact of narrow networks

The mission creep of maintenance of certification

Physician
July 19, 2014

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Up until 1988, being board certified in pediatrics was a voluntary process of passing the board exam once in a career. The American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) apparently realized this process didn’t make them much money, so in 1989, they abruptly ended “lifetime certification” and required an open book test and the associated fee every seven years.  I was in pediatric residency during this maintenance of certification …

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The mission creep of maintenance of certification