Advocacy
Advocacy is one of the great benefits of membership in TDS. Our physician leaders span the state and lead advocacy initiatives. They attend events, meet with legislators individually and in groups, support PACs, and partner with other medical societies to advance and protect dermatology, along with the entire practice of medicine. Our work is not limited to the state of Tennessee. We also work at the federal level with key partners and legislators to represent the profession, and more importantly, our patients.
Our Advocacy Partners
American Academy of Dermatology (AAD)
TDS functions as a state chapter of the AAD, which positions us as key stakeholders in the development of policy to advance the profession of dermatology and protect our patients.
The American Academy of Dermatology Association advocates on issues and prioritizes work on those that are most pressing and impactful for our membership.
2026 Sole Federal Congressional Advocacy Priority: Protecting Medicare Access to Physicians.
To establish a positive annual inflation adjustment.
To replace or eliminate budget neutrality requirements to the physician payment system.
Temporary fixes and continued cuts to the Medicare physician payment system are destabilizing dermatology practices and threatening patient access to care. Since 2001, the cost of operating a medical practice has increased 60%, while economy-wide inflation has risen 83%. During this time, Medicare hospital facility updates increased by roughly 73%, significantly outpacing physician reimbursement. Adjusted for inflation in practice costs, Medicare physician reimbursement has declined 33% from 2001 to 2026.
Congress should provide physicians with positive, inflation-based reimbursement updates to ensure practices maintain financial stability and patients have continued access to care. It is also imperative that Congress revise the budget neutrality policies to: (a) prevent erroneous utilization estimates from leading to inappropriate cuts; (b) clarify the types of services subject to budget neutrality adjustments; and (c) update the projected expenditure threshold triggering the budget neutrality adjustment, which has remained unchanged since 1992.
You can view AAD’s 2026 advocacy agenda here.
Tennessee Medical Association (TMA)
TMA is our statewide partner for advocacy. We work with TMA first to advance advocacy initiatives for dermatology, and then to advance initiatives that impact the entire medical profession in Tennessee. TDS also places delegates in TMA’s House of Delegates, which gives us a voice in the policymaking of TMA. TDS members are also active in TMA’s local medical societies, which gives us an even greater impact on the state’s healthcare.
You can learn more about TMA’s advocacy efforts at this link.
