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SAN ANTONIO
MEDICINE

Leah Hanselka Jacobson, MD Interview

“If we do not work to manage medical legislation, it will be managed for us.”
2017 BCMS President, Leah Hanselka Jacobson, MD

Interviewed by Monica Jones, BCMS COO

T his month’s magazine, “Legislative Wrap-up,” is the perfect tion (MOC) as a re-

quirement for state li-
time to interview Dr. Leah H. Jacobson. Dr. Jacobson was
the BCMS President in 2017, and is one of only three
women BCMS Presidents in the history of BCMS. censure, hospital
privileges or insurance
Dr. Jacobson has been a member of BCMS since 1990. She com- participation.
pleted her undergrad at Texas A&M University and her Medical De- • HB 1600: Allowed
gree at the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio. Medicaid to pay physi-
She continues to support BCMS in the following roles: Delegate to cians for mental health
the TMA, BCMS Legislative Committee Member, BCMS Women in screenings during an-
Medicine Committee, and is Co-Chair of the BCMS Public Health nual well-child exams,
& Patient Advocacy Committee. just to discuss a few.
The Texas State Legislature was in Special Session in 2017, during
Dr. Jacobson’s term, because the Legislature failed to reauthorize the There were many im-
Texas Medical Board (TMB) and the Texas Medical Practice Act. At portant events that oc-
the time, she pondered in her President’s message of her concern, curred during Dr.
“Could we, as physicians, be without a governing board?” While the Jacobson’s BCMS Presi-
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Sunset Bill(s) remained top priority during the Regular and Special dency. Tobacco-21 (“T-21”) was approved by the City of San Antonio,
Sessions, many bills were passed that influenced the practice of medi- after a long, coordinated city effort; the #MeToo Movement emerged;
cine for physicians and patients. the U.S. declared the opioid epidemic a national emergency; and gun
Dr. Jacobson is a strong advocate for getting involved in the process. violence was prominent after mass shooting events in Las Vegas (Man-
“Policy-making is not a spectator sport,” she offers. “You cannot sit on dalay Bay Resort) and Sutherland Springs, Texas.
the sidelines and say somebody else will do it. You’ve got to be involved That same year, Hurricane Harvey was one of the worst storms to
and you’ve got to be interested.” hit Texas in more than 20 years, with an estimated damage of $75 bil-
lion. The storm dropped a record 51 inches of rain on the Houston
Highlights of 2017 Texas legislative bills included area over a five-day period. More than 72,000 people had to be rescued
the following: during the storm and another 30,000 needed temporary shelter. During
• HB 10: Established a state mental health parity work group, as well Dr. Jacobson’s term, BCMS recruited 207 physician members and 370
as designated an ombudsman as an advocacy source and clarified other medical personnel volunteers to provide medical services for the
benefits for mental health and substance abuse. benefit of displaced Hurricane Harvey evacuees. Working with San
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• SB 507: Expanded the billing mediation process for out-of-network Antonio Metro Health and the City of San Antonio Emergency Op-
facilities and providers. erations Center “EOC,” BCMS volunteers provided 24-hour medical
• SB 680: Empowered the physicians to override health plans’ step coverage beginning at a number of shelters set up in San Antonio. Dr.
therapy protocols. Jacobson gives credit for this community response to the BCMS Emer-
• SB 1066: Required new medical schools to offer new GME positions gency Preparedness Committee and the volunteers who worked tire-
to keep pace with their medical graduates. lessly assisting evacuees with medical care and transports.
• SB 1107: Established a statutory definition for telemedicine and clar- Dr. Jacobson remains a strong advocate for women physicians, which
ified standard of care. represent only one-third of practicing physicians in the United States.
• SB 1148: Prohibited the state from using maintenance of certifica- BCMS’s Women in Medicine Committee has been promoting women

34 SAN ANTONIO MEDICINE • August 2023